France protests: 800,000 people, tear gas and looting in Grenoble

Mass protests against the high cost of living and for better public services took place in France on 24 October: according to the unions, cited by AFP, about 800,000 people took to the streets, a quarter of a million of them in Paris. The Interior Ministry puts the figure at half that, 410,000 across the country.

According to the Paris police prefecture, a column of about 110,000 people marched through the city. The march set off around 14:00 Central European Summer Time from Porte d'Italie in the south of the capital and reached Porte de Vincennes in the east three hours later. At the end of the demonstration, police used tear gas and water cannons, AP reports. Officers carried out more than 3,000 checks and detained 65 people.

Tear gas was also used in other cities, including Lyon, Clermont-Ferrand and Strasbourg; in Nice and Nantes, according to French media, water cannons were deployed. In Toulouse, according to AFP, a 20-year-old man suffered a serious hand injury in clashes with police: a medic said an object exploded near him and he lost several fingers. The authorities are investigating the incident but give no details so far.

In Grenoble, in the east of the country, the protest turned into looting: demonstrators stormed several shops, including a local supermarket, from which they threw food out in front of onlookers.

A week earlier, protests against rising prices had already taken place in France, organised by the “yellow vests” movement, trade unions and student groups. By various estimates, between 550,000 and 800,000 people took part, and the demonstrations were accompanied by violence, looting of shops and arson attacks on government offices and town halls. That is why the government today deployed tens of thousands of security personnel with helicopters, drones and water cannons, banned unauthorised demonstrations and closed some cultural institutions.

Around Prague, based on reporting by seznamzpravy.cz