Protestsupdated 53m ago3 min read
MapFrance Police Fire Tear Gas as 320,000 Protesters March in Paris and Across France
“France's protests were overwhelmingly peaceful, with whimsical Halloween costumes lightening the mood”
“While the protests have been largely peaceful, police arrested 1,300 people last week after an estimated 410,000 took to the streets in cities across the country.”
Map: © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL · Cropped for layout
This article is an automated aggregation of coverage from news outlets. Our editorials offer in-depth analysis curated by the NewsCord team.
Police fired tear gas as protests raged in Paris and across France. More than 320,000 people demonstrated nationwide, Paris included.
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Halloween weekend mobilization
France prepared for a third consecutive weekend of nationwide demonstrations as police fired tear gas and clashed with protesters in Paris, and the BBC said more than 320,000 people took to the streets around the country. France’s Interior Ministry reported 320,000 participants across France and at least 290 protesters arrested, while the BBC added that police say about 70,000 demonstrated in Paris. Germany and France also braced for protests that could coincide with Halloween, with Al Jazeera saying about 150,000 people in Germany registered to turn out in about 30 cities including Berlin, Frankfurt and Cologne.
Germany’s youth-led movement “Gen Z has got this!” planned demonstrations in major cities including Berlin, Frankfurt, Cologne and Munich, and CNN said organizers planned the large day of action to coincide with Halloween to maximize turnout and visibility. France’s interior minister warned of a “very high risk” of disorder over the weekend, and Al Jazeera reported that French police were preparing by deploying 70,000 police officers nationwide and closing more than 40 metro stations in Paris.
Numbers, arrests, and routes
In France, the French Interior Ministry said 320,000 people participated in protests across France today, while Liberations cited the youth union coordinating committee as saying demonstrations across the country reached half a million, including 200,000 in Paris. Al Jazeera reported that by Saturday afternoon local time in France, police had arrested 27 people in connection with the protests since this morning, compared with 217 arrests recorded a week earlier. The BBC said at least 290 protesters were arrested, and it also reported that police fired tear gas and clashed with protesters in a third weekend of nationwide demonstrations.
Al Jazeera said police blocked protests from the traditional route between the Place de la Bastille and the Nation, and it described protesters’ discontent at attempts to push their voices away from the heart of the capital. In Germany, CNN reported that water cannons and riot police were deployed in Cologne and Hamburg, and it quoted police in Cologne saying, “Our measures are directed against troublemakers and violent individuals – not against peaceful participants,”.
Security posture and demands
France deployed about 70,000 security personnel nationwide and imposed restrictions and curfews in specific areas to prevent a repeat of the unrest seen two weeks earlier, and Al Jazeera said authorities sought to avoid a repetition of the violence, rioting and looting. France’s interior minister Laurent Nuñez warned of a “very high risk” of public disorder, and the BBC reported that police fired tear gas and clashed with protesters as the country prepared for a general strike in the coming days. In Germany, Al Jazeera quoted spokesperson Veronika Dinter saying, “Young people are living in a high-risk phase, and yet they are not being listened to,” while it also reported that the demonstrators demanded allocations to education and social services instead of weapons.
In Paris, Al Jazeera said protests included Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader of France Insoumise, and deputies Rima Hassan and Paul Vanié, protesting against the high cost of living and education conditions. In Germany, CNN said luxury shops lining Berlin’s upmarket Kurfürstendamm boarded up their windows as a precautionary measure, and it added that protesters called for the resignation of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz while denouncing the high cost of living.