The key facts

  • Second day of clashes in Paris: tear gas, stun grenades, store looting; arrests
  • About 2,000 arrests nationwide, 550 of 855 Paris detainees remain in custody; ~500 injured security personnel
  • Estimates of protest turnout differ: Interior Ministry — 550,000, CGT union — 800,000

New clashes in Paris

French police clashed with protesters and looters for the second day in a row on Sunday, amid the aftermath of Saturday's riots during nationwide demonstrations over the cost of living, when about 2,000 people were detained across the country. Paris municipal services had not managed to clear burned-out cars, shattered storefronts and debris when new unrest began. According to AFP, several hundred people gathered at Place de la République after calls on social media; authorities said the gathering was not authorized. TV channels showed looting at a clothing store, with bicycles set on fire nearby. The Paris police prefecture said law enforcement intervened after 'facing the first signs of tension.' AFP correspondents saw police use tear gas and stun grenades against hundreds of people gathered; bottles and stones were thrown at police, and several people were detained.

Detainees, casualties and the scale of the protests

According to the group of lawyers Legal Team Paris, about 550 of the 855 people detained in Paris on Saturday remained in custody, and police stations were struggling to cope with the influx. The Interior Ministry said about 500 police officers, firefighters and paramedics were injured during the protests. Estimates of the number of participants in Saturday's protests differ: the Interior Ministry spoke of 550,000 people, the CGT union of 800,000. According to prosecutors, in Saint-Étienne a 17-year-old young man lost his right hand due to a crowd-dispersal grenade, and in Mulhouse a 17-year-old girl lost an eye.

Damage and eyewitness accounts

On Saturday, looting was recorded in Paris, Marseille, Bordeaux, Nice and Strasbourg. According to the retail federation, about 1,500 businesses were affected, with losses estimated in the hundreds of millions of dollars. One person died during the main demonstration in Paris, but officials said the case was health-related. In Limoges, a 19th-century town hall burned down; local prefect Maurice Barat told the LCI channel that the fire was set by 'a wild horde.' On Sunday, about 7,000 people marched through the city to express outrage at the destruction. In Lyon, a tourist office burned down during the protests, and a clothing store was also looted there on Sunday. Residents of Paris and Limoges described what was happening as 'war' and 'looting with complete impunity.' Danish tourist Søren Petersen called what he saw 'far beyond an ordinary protest.'

Political reactions

Six months before the presidential election, the government is being criticized for its preparation for the day of action, which followed weeks of student protests over conditions in schools. President Emmanuel Macron, who promised on Saturday to hold accountable everyone involved in vandalism and looting, was due to address the nation on Sunday at 18:00 GMT. National Rally presidential candidate Marine Le Pen said Macron's administration 'is running on fumes, exhausted and disoriented,' and that the country is experiencing 'a deep crisis of trust and authority that threatens democracy'; she leads in the polls. Le Pen blames far-left groups, while the leader of La France Insoumise, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, accused the authorities of fueling tensions. US President Donald Trump blamed the riots on immigration in social media posts, writing: 'France is burning! The immigration of people from a completely different world, people with hatred in their hearts, has destroyed this once great country.' The 'yellow vests' movement, which protested plans to raise a fuel tax eight years ago, declared Saturday's demonstrations 'yellow and youth' ones.