France Arrests Nearly 1,000 as Cost-of-Living Protests Escalate
Nunez said most marches unfolded as expected, but groups flagged as potential troublemakers split off from the main columns to smash property and assault security forces. “Law enforcement intervened systematically in response to these acts, which were numerous, involving projectile throwing and mortar fire,” he said.
The arrest count far outstrips the 385 logged at the same stage of last weekend’s protests, the minister said.
City-center shops were shielded for the most part, Nunez said, though looters hit some businesses in certain cities. He called the situation an improvement on the previous week. Police also confiscated a large haul of items that could serve as weapons, and he praised the security operation as effective.
Two people were gravely injured, one in Clermont-Ferrand and one in Toulouse, according to Nunez.
The minister defended the police response as proportionate and dismissed accusations that authorities were suppressing the protest movement. “Without the police, there would have been no march,” Nunez said, pointing to the level of aggression officers faced.
Citing local administration in Tours, where roughly 5,000 people marched, he said authorities spotted as many as 800 masked individuals trying to evade identification before they vandalized property.
Nunez also pointed to an incident in Nice, where a far-right group reportedly tried to guard businesses before police dispersed it. He described it as “a first.”
No public buildings were attacked, the minister said, crediting police intervention. He contrasted this with Oct. 17, when public facilities were targeted, including city halls in Limoges and Marseille and the tourist office in Lyon.
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