The key facts
- Looting hit Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Bordeaux, Rennes, Strasbourg, Grenoble, Nice and Limoges; Carrefour, Franprix, Monoprix, luxury boutiques and bars were ransacked
- Carrefour: 50 stores of the chain were affected, repairs will cost more than €10 million; in total, according to Bompard, around 1,500 stores were affected
- French Interior Ministry: more than 600 injured police officers, gendarmes and firefighters, over 2,000 arrests; an Euronews crew was attacked by looters in Paris
Protests over rising prices escalated into riots
Mass protests against the rising cost of living, joined by student demonstrations, took place in France on Saturday, October 17, and in a number of cities escalated into riots and looting. According to French authorities, stores were looted in Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Bordeaux, Rennes, Strasbourg, Grenoble, Nice and Limoges. Among the affected were Carrefour, Franprix and Monoprix supermarkets, as well as luxury boutiques, bars and vape shops. Groups of masked people, many dressed in black, smashed windows, tore off metal shutters and took goods from the shelves. On Sunday morning, the streets of Paris were littered with broken glass and trash.
Damage to retail
Chairman of the board and CEO of Carrefour Alexandre Bompard said on Sunday that a total of 50 stores were attacked, including 19 Carrefour convenience stores and supermarkets — in Paris, Rennes, Lille and Bordeaux, among other cities. According to him, around 1,500 stores of other retail chains and private shops were also affected. Bompard described the consequences as 'significant in human and economic terms': dozens of employees of franchise partners will be moved to reduced working hours, and the cost of repairs will exceed €10 million.
Affected business owners and the Paris authorities' response
The owner of a store near Place de la République in Paris told the outlet Brut that he had invested all his savings in the business and feels he has lost everything: 'I don't know how I will survive and how I will live with my family.' According to Brut, a neighbor organized a fundraiser to support the owner. Paris mayor Emmanuel Grégoire promised full support to businesses affected in the capital and said he had requested the creation of an 'emergency task force to support merchants who have fallen victim to vandalism.' According to him, the task force's mission is to assess the damage, support those affected and help them with administrative and insurance procedures.
Attack on the Euronews crew
An Euronews crew was attacked by looters on Saturday in Paris near Place de la République. Correspondent Estelle Nilsson-Julien said the crew was on Boulevard Magenta next to a looted Intermarché Express supermarket: when the looters noticed the filming, they surrounded the journalists, began beating the camera operator and tried to snatch the microphone, then pinned him against a wall. According to her, she too was struck, but the camera operator, wearing protective goggles and a mask, was unharmed. Meanwhile, a march along Boulevard de Clichy to Place de Clichy, according to another Euronews journalist, proceeded peacefully.
Interior Ministry figures
French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said on Sunday that more than 600 police officers, gendarmes and firefighters were injured on Saturday, and more than 2,000 people were arrested.
