French President Emmanuel Macron has urged people to maintain “calm and order” after protests against rising living costs and deteriorating public services escalated into rioting and looting on Saturday, with smaller-scale unrest continuing in Paris on Sunday.
Addressing the nation from the Élysée Palace, Macron warned participants against further escalation, saying, “We all feel anger and shame.”
Around 550,000 demonstrators took to the streets across France in largely peaceful protests over rising fuel prices, the cost of living and declining public services, including schools, reports BBC.
Macron said authorities must distinguish between protesters’ “legitimate demands” and “those who destroyed, smashed and looted”.
France’s interior ministry said police had arrested around 2,400 people.
The president condemned the violence, saying “nothing justifies” the “unbridled” acts of destruction and warning that those responsible would face justice.
Groups of rioters, some dressed in black and wearing masks and balaclavas, took to the streets of Paris, Marseille and other cities. Some set fire to cars and buildings, while widespread looting affected shops and businesses.
On Sunday, clashes with police and looting continued on a smaller scale in parts of Paris and Lyon.
According to the AFP news agency, police fired tear gas and stun grenades at hundreds of people in Paris, while demonstrators again threw bottles and rocks at officers.
Cities across France faced the aftermath of what developed into one of the worst episodes of disorder in modern French history.
In Limoges, a fire started by rioters on Saturday gutted the ornate 19th-century city hall. The blaze engulfed the building before its clock tower and roof collapsed.
Speaking near the damaged building, Annèyse said: “This is very upsetting. Harming heritage buildings just because you are angry at the government is selfish, I think. It’s hurting everybody.”
Another man, who identified himself as Gerrard, said: “It’s awful and unbelievable. We are very sad and I think it will be a long time to put it back as it was before.”
In Paris, shopkeepers began clearing large shards of broken glass from outside their businesses early on Sunday as rubbish trucks removed debris from some of the capital’s main streets.
Looting spread across Paris, Marseille and Lille, as well as other parts of the country.
Macron said local prefects and mayors would prepare measures to protect shops and public buildings.
He also promised “full transparency” over the police response to the demonstrations.
Police used tear gas and water cannon against crowds during the weekend, while riot officers were seen striking people with batons in several locations.
France’s interior ministry said around 1,000 police officers suffered injuries on Saturday, including seven who were seriously hurt.
Student protests that began last month intensified significantly on Saturday after trade union members and other anti-government groups joined the demonstrations.
The political response highlighted deep divisions in France as the country prepares for an election in April that could pit the hard-right against the hard-left.
Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said demonstrating was a fundamental right but accused “several thousand far-left individuals” of committing “outrages” and deliberately targeting public buildings and confronting police.
He said the groups were later joined by “delinquents who looted and ransacked numerous businesses in several cities in France”.
Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader of the hard-left La France Insoumise party, strongly criticised Nuñez and police chiefs on social media.
Mélenchon accused them of having “shown complete incompetence” in handling the demonstrations and called them “specialists in organised chaos”.
Meanwhile, Marine Le Pen, leader of the hard-right National Rally party, condemned the “exploitation” of public anger “by political forces that encourage violence”.
