Dozens of people have been detained in the French capital Paris after protesters clashed with security forces across the city. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Unions and citizens who call themselves “yellow vests” are protesting against the cost of living crisis and rising fuel prices as a result of the US-Israel war against Iran. Large numbers of students also joined nationwide protests on Saturday, demanding a revamp of the country’s education system, improvements to classrooms and facilities and greater access to resources. Protesters broke into the town hall of France’s second largest city, Marseille. Masked protesters charged the gate with security barriers. Several then entered, one of them spray-painting an anarchist “A” symbol on a wall before the police intervened. “We are storming the Bastille,” shouted one protester, referring to the storming of a fortress in 1789 during the French Revolution. Meanwhile, stores across the country have boarded up their windows in an attempt to prevent potential looting or vandalism. Thousands of police forces and riot units have been deployed across the country to reinforce security. According to a source close to the French Interior Ministry, 500 actions are planned across the country on Saturday, as well as around 90 protests, as authorities prepare for possible violence in Paris and other major cities. The protests follow four weeks of student demonstrations over a variety of issues, including teacher absences, overcrowded classrooms and outdated facilities. Most student protests have been peaceful, but there have been clashes with rioters and widespread criticism of alleged police brutality and violence. The source told Euronews that the far-left movement could try to provoke clashes with law enforcement and try to breach security perimeters along protest routes. They also warned that blockades of key transportation routes and essential infrastructure “will not be tolerated.” Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron said Friday that while the right to protest “is fully respected,” it “must be accompanied by respect for people and property.” “That is why I call for calm and respect: these rights must be preserved,” he said. Increasing scrutiny of police actions French law enforcement authorities have faced increasing scrutiny in recent weeks amid several allegations of police violence. In one case, a 15-year-old schoolboy allegedly lost an eye after being hit by a police rubber bullet. In another incident, a 14-year-old boy allegedly lost a hand after picking up a stun grenade from police. The circumstances surrounding both cases remain under investigation. As a result of this latest case, France suspended the use of certain types of stun grenades. However, in an interview on Friday, French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said the use of stun grenades would be allowed on October 17 in case “serious urban violence” occurred on the sidelines of the demonstrations, warning that stun grenades were “never used when things are going well.” Núñez told France’s Senate on Tuesday that 36 investigations had been opened into alleged police violence during student protests. He said four of these cases were related to mutilating injuries and six to serious injuries, while the others were related to alleged beatings, insults and allegations of sexual violence. A man who had flown to Paris from the United States on Friday told Euronews that he “supported” the peaceful protests. “Hopefully no one gets hurt and people’s voices are heard,” he said. A taxi driver in the capital described the situation as “very delicate.” “People have the right to protest, but peacefully,” he said, adding that “those responsible need to find some solutions.” Yellow vest movement There has been speculation that the October 17 demonstration could mark the return of the grassroots yellow vest movement, which emerged in 2018 in reaction to a planned government increase in fuel and diesel taxes. For months, yellow vest protesters gathered every weekend to block roundabouts, highways and fuel depots across the country, and tense police clashes also occurred. It comes as the French government also faces a major public debt crisis as it tries to pass a budget containing austerity measures through a hung parliament. The police union files a complaint against the state for “endangering the lives of others” French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said on Thursday that 937 police officers and gendarmes had been injured since the start of the protests. It also reported injuries among 248 students and 149 teaching staff, which it said was the highest number of injuries ever recorded by the French Ministry of Education. Lecornu warned that the “high school student movement” was transforming into a “wave of urban violence.” Meanwhile, the Alliance Police Nationale, one of France’s largest police unions, announced in a statement Tuesday that it would file a complaint against the state “for endangering the lives of others.” The union denounced what it called “conflicting orders” given to police officers, who have been “exposed to violence and left at the mercy of public hostility” during high school protests. “After the president [French President Emmanuel Macron] expressions of empathy towards rioters and an emphasis on dialogue, we are now faced with vague instructions, contradictory orders and superficial public statements.” “The discrepancy between Laurent Nuñez’s public statements and verbal instructions transmitted through the chain of command has become unbearable,” the union said. The far-left France Insumisa party has been accused by the government and its political opponents of encouraging violence and stoking unrest through inflammatory language. In a speech delivered on September 30, the party’s leader, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, urged his followers to “stand up to police brutality”, adding that “there will be no forgetting or forgiveness for anyone”.
