Paris, France, October 24 (ANI) — Hundreds of demonstrations took place across France as public anger mounted over the rising cost of living and insufficient education funding, leading to clashes with security forces seeking to prevent a recurrence of recent violence.
According to official figures released by French law enforcement, approximately 410,000 people participated in demonstrations nationwide.
While the initial gatherings were relatively peaceful, serious clashes broke out late Saturday evening in Paris. Riot police deployed tear gas and water cannons against crowds to restore order as security forces were mobilized across the country to prevent further violence, Euronews reported.
Violence and confrontations with police spread to several major regional centers, including Lyon, Lille, Marseille, Montpellier, Nantes and Toulouse.
In Lyon, riot police filled the streets and fired tear gas to disperse a crowd of approximately 150 demonstrators who attempted to block a major road in an area where protests were prohibited, Euronews reported.
France 24 reported that nearly 10,000 people marched through Lyon despite lacking prior authorization and facing an expanded ban on gatherings in the city center, according to estimates from Rhône prefectural authorities.
Prefectural officials said demonstrators gathered in several groups across the city, moving “in a very erratic manner, without any clearly defined objective” throughout the afternoon.
In the southwestern city of Toulouse, local authorities estimated that 26,000 people participated in Saturday’s demonstrations, France 24 reported.
Earlier in the day, French police arrested 135 people nationwide and seized a wide range of weapons during the demonstrations, Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said. The arrests came as the far-right National Rally party began its convention in Orléans, south of Paris, attracting both supporters and counterprotesters.
France 24 reported that Nuñez said there had been “no major incident” at that point, while Paris police described the atmosphere in the capital around midday as “calm.”
Authorities confirmed that confiscated items included metal balls, lead pellets, fireworks, slingshots, steel balls, improvised weapons, airsoft guns and a Japanese katana sword.
The security crackdown came as thousands of demonstrators gathered in Orléans to protest a two-day convention organized by Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally party, known in French as Rassemblement National.
The city became the main focus of Saturday’s mobilizations, with local prefectural officials reporting that 11,000 protesters had gathered by noon, according to France 24.
Marchers in Orléans targeted both Le Pen and President Emmanuel Macron, chanting slogans and carrying banners opposing the far right. The gathering served as a key campaign event for Le Pen, six months ahead of France’s presidential election.
The demonstration brought together a broad coalition of participants, including left-wing party leaders, trade unions, student groups, activists and nongovernmental organizations such as Amnesty International, according to France 24.
Jordan Bardella was reelected president of the National Rally on Saturday during the party’s congress in Orléans.
The gathering began shortly before 3 p.m. at the Zénith arena in the Loiret department, where thousands of party delegates and activists assembled in support of the party, chanting “Marine for President,” France 24 reported.
Meanwhile, peaceful demonstrations continued in several parts of France, including Marseille, Lyon and Lille, although clashes between police and protesters were reported in Lyon.
The rallies continued a wave of protests that began more than a month ago, when students demonstrated over high school conditions, teacher shortages, school schedules and educational inequality between public and private institutions, France 24 reported.
The student-led movement has since expanded into a broader national mobilization involving trade unions, civil society groups and the Yellow Vests movement. The expansion followed violent clashes during cost-of-living demonstrations a week earlier.
Amid the escalating crisis, President Emmanuel Macron convened a meeting of his defense council, which includes senior ministers and government officials. (ANI)
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