French police clash with protesters in Paris as unrest continues into Sunday
Hundreds gathered at Place de la République after Saturday’s nationwide cost-of-living marches. Reports give differing arrest and injury totals.
French police clashed with protesters in Paris on Sunday, 18 October, as unrest continued after nationwide cost-of-living demonstrations the previous day. AFP reported that officers used tear gas and stun grenades at Place de la République, where several hundred people had gathered, and made arrests.
The gathering followed calls on social media and had not been approved by authorities, according to AFP. The Paris police prefecture said officers moved in after what it called initial signs of tension. AFP journalists reported that bottles and rocks were thrown at police; television footage showed a clothing store being looted, while bicycles were set alight nearby.
Arrest figures differ after Saturday’s marches
AFP put the number arrested across France during Saturday’s unrest at around 2,000, including 855 in Paris. RTÉ, in a report credited to AFP, said Interior Minister Laurent Nunez had reported more than 1,800 arrests. The Times of India also reported around 1,800, attributing that figure to the minister. Those accounts do not establish a single settled nationwide total.
Of the 855 people arrested in Paris, 550 remained in detention, according to the Legal Team Paris group of lawyers cited by AFP. The group said police stations were struggling to cope. City workers were still clearing torched cars, damaged shopfronts and burnt debris from Saturday when the fresh trouble began, AFP reported.
Marches drew hundreds of thousands
Saturday’s marches brought large crowds onto streets across France. The interior ministry estimated attendance at 550,000, while the CGT union put it at 800,000, AFP reported. The Yellow Vest movement, which held protests against President Emmanuel Macron’s government over planned fuel tax increases eight years ago, had called for the demonstrations, according to AFP reporting carried by RTÉ.
The reported injuries also cover different groups. AFP said Nunez reported around 500 police officers, firefighters and paramedics hurt. RTÉ’s AFP-sourced report quoted Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu saying more than 150 police officers had been injured. Prosecutors said a 17-year-old boy lost his right hand to a crowd-control grenade in Saint-Etienne and a 17-year-old girl lost an eye in Mulhouse, according to AFP.
The unrest prompted reactions beyond France. The Times of India reported that Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni condemned violence after demonstrations in Milan, while saying she respected peaceful demonstrators. Milan Mayor Giuseppe Sala also condemned the destruction and acknowledged protesters’ concerns, the outlet reported.
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Sources and context
- 2,000 arrested as French unrest spills into second dayAFP, republished by Dawn
- France's unrest spills across borders as protests turn violent in Belgium, ItalyThe Times of India
- 1,800 arrested amid clashes, looting in French protestsRTÉ, reporting sourced to AFP
AI-assisted article checked against the listed sources. NewsJaws did not conduct interviews or attend the reported events.