There is no place for violence: burning buildings, looting, and more than 1,200 arrested in massive protests in France with cross-accusations between the government and the left

There is no room for violence: burning buildings, looting, and more than 1,200 arrested in massive protests in France with cross-accusations between the government and the left - Author, Editorial - Author's Title, BBC News Mundo - Publication Date - Reading Time: 8 min The fires in the streets continued on Saturday night, following a "day of fury" across France with clashes between the police and protesters who were demonstrating against education, high prices, and the deterioration of the welfare state. In response to the incidents, French President Emmanuel Macron assured that "there is no room for violence" in his country. The Macron government blamed the "extreme left" for mobilizing the protests of this Saturday, ahead of the presidential elections in April, while the leader of the main leftist party accused him of "playing with fire" by "provoking chaos" in the streets. The police deployed tear gas against demonstrations of between half a million and 800,000 people who came out to express their dissatisfaction. The Minister of the Interior, Laurent Nuñez, said that looting or attempted looting were recorded in several cities, including Paris, Rouen, Nantes, Toulouse, and Marseille. The main demonstration took place in the French capital. But in the city of Limoges, 400 kilometers to the south, firefighters had to rush to contain the fire devouring the city hall building, a 19th-century structure. The local prefecture reported that two-thirds of the facade had disappeared and that the building was "largely lost". The Minister of the Interior told journalists that an intrusion and a fire caused by arson had occurred inside the building. A wide variety of groups joined in across the country after the student protests recorded over several weeks. The demonstrations began last month in schools in the poor peripheral neighborhoods of northern Paris, where indignation over the absence of teachers and the poor state of facilities quickly turned into a nationwide movement against inequality, scarce public investment, and the deterioration of the educational level. Among the protesters were the "yellow vests"—known for protesting against the rise in fuel prices—as well as unions and young people. On this Saturday, a "escalation of violence" occurred, and more than 1,200 people were arrested, the government reported. Damage was recorded at a police station in Marseille, where images also showed flames and masked people in the streets. The prefect of Bouches-du-Rhône, the department where Marseille is located, stated that 107 police officers were injured—three of them "very seriously"—due to the "looting and violence" in the city. In Lyon, in eastern France, protesters set fire to the tourist office, informing the news agency AFP and local media. The images showed the protesters in front of the burning building, with fire both inside and outside. They also destroyed several windows. The local police said that "hostile individuals" were preventing firefighters from safely extinguishing the fire, while police officers worked to "disperse the violent groups". "Many of the buildings around us have been destroyed, and we have seen some protesters looting and throwing glass bottles, which further exacerbates the chaos," reported BBC journalist Adina Campbell from Paris. "The protesters, some of whom came from the peripheral neighborhoods with the intention of causing disturbances, are still confronting the police," she added. "They will be prosecuted and punished." In a social media post, Macron wrote that those who "destroyed and attacked" prefectures and businesses and "looted" city halls would be "prosecuted and punished". "We will all stand together against the sowers of chaos, who only seek to tear down our institutions and prevent those who peacefully express their demands from doing so," he added. For his part, the Minister of the Interior, Laurent Nuñez, stated during a television address that the police contributed to the peaceful demonstrations being able to take place by containing the violent protesters. Nuñez criticized the figures of the "extreme left" who "openly incited the revolt" and stated that they will have to assume responsibility for the chaos that occurred on the streets of France on Saturday. The French Prime Minister, Sébastien Lecornu, assured that the country will not be "intimidated". "To those who clearly intend to use this violence as a 'warm-up' before the presidential elections, I tell them without reservation: we will not be intimidated. No one will impose their political agenda through violence," he expressed. Lecornu blamed the left for "giving excuses" to violent protesters, praised the police officers for confronting "extreme violence," and added that they deserve the support of the citizenry. On the other side, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader of the main left-wing party La France Insoumise (LFI—La France Insumisa), accused the French Prime Minister of exacerbating the conflict. "He played with fire. Believing everything would rot, all he has achieved is uniting all the youth and workers' unions. Furthermore, his orders for savage repression (...) have unleashed an unprecedented mobilization in the country," Mélenchon wrote on social media. "By engaging with me in a political controversy, he shows that he is not a man of state. He is merely a subordinate provoking a regime crisis. Does he not realize the damage he is causing? Does he not have anything better to do, at this moment, than get entangled in this political dispute and give moral lessons?" Regarding police action, he pointed out that the "government has sown chaos with its absurd and incompetent decisions". The General Confederation of Labor (CGT) of France called this latest wave of demonstrations "a new stage in the mobilization process" and maintained that the government "must respond without delay to the demands" of the population. Among the changes it urges the Macron government to accept are increases in salaries and pensions, as well as the reestablishment of a wealth tax. The CGT "calls for continuing with peaceful mobilization alongside young people" in the coming days, which will culminate in a "great trade union strike" on November 5th. Vandalism and Looting According to the BBC correspondent in Paris, Hugh Schofield, there was a clear contrast between the official demonstration, which went from the Place de la République to the Place de Clichy, and what happened and is happening in several points of the rest of the capital. The main march, he noted, "seemed to take place peacefully; however, throughout the capital there were small groups of protesters wandering around, some clearly determined to cause disturbances". This was at least what was recorded in the first hours of the day. But the situation became more confusing and violent as the hours passed. Schofield pointed out that "this recalls the first days of the 'yellow vest' movement eight years ago, when the violence of these small uncontrolled groups proved too much for the police". In Tolon, in southern France, local authorities indicated that there were "several acts of violence" in front of the procession. Two police officers were wounded by projectiles, while "violent individuals" also dismantled the fences of a Christmas market and used them against the police, added the authorities. Violent acts were also recorded on the margins of a demonstration in Caen, in the Normandy region, where, according to local authorities, some groups dedicated themselves to "looting and committing acts of vandalism". They threw stones and painted graffiti on several public buildings in the city. They used a pile driver to force open a police barrier and caused damage to two police vehicles, according to the authorities. Marine Le Pen, presidential candidate of the far-right National Rally (RN) party of France, accused the "rioters" of "poisoning" the demonstrations of this Saturday across the country. The protesters' demands have been "hijacked by the extreme left," he wrote on his social media, and added that the groups that legitimize violence "seek to plunge the country into chaos". Regular protests or something deeper? Analysis by Hugh Schofield, BBC correspondent in Paris The question to be asked about the French protests is the following: are they simply the latest version of the custom, so common in the country, of demonstrating in the streets, or is something deeper and more significant happening? In a sense, the movement is very much like what has been seen many times before: the cause, the march, the destruction, the tear gas, the arrests, the reports of police brutality. It is a kind of theater with its pre-established scenes and a final act that is performed when everyone feels they have had enough. Practically every autumn some theme or other arises in France that follows this pattern. But is there anything different now? Something that could turn the period 2026-2027 into one of those moments that mark an era, like May 1968, the Paris Commune of 1870 or the social revolutions of 1848 across Europe, when protests truly marked the beginning of a change? The arguments in favor of this view are real. It is the inability of the French centrist government to act. It is the failed experiment of ten years of radical Macronism. It is the general disillusionment with politics as we have known it. It is the debt crisis, which, according to serious people, could lead to a French default. It is the impoverishment caused by inflation. It is the rise of the extremes. It is the war in Europe. It is Trump. There are the French presidential elections of April/May. The world is very unstable. Things are changing. - Download the new BBC World Service app. Choose BBC News Mundo and receive news, documentaries, and analysis alerts, all in one place. Important: the new application is not available in the United Kingdom or the United States. - You can also follow us on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, X, and our WhatsApp channel. - And don't forget to subscribe here to our newsletter to receive a special selection of our best content every Friday.