Riots arson, vandalize and loot as 550,000 people demonstrate in chaos - France

[Paris Current Affairs] On the 17th, high school students demanding improved learning environments and labor union officials dissatisfied with the soaring cost of living held a joint demonstration against the government in France. According to the Ministry of the Interior, an estimated 550,000 people across the country participated (800,000 according to organizers). Rioters also mixed in, engaging in arson, vandalism, and repeated clashes with authorities. Stores were looted. Approximately 1,800 people had been arrested by the 18th, and more than 500 police and fire personnel were injured.

In the capital, Paris, 110,000 people marched for several kilometers. Executives from the radical left-wing opposition party ``France Indomitable'', which supports the high school student demonstrations that began in September, rushed to the scene. Meanwhile, rioters continued to throw stones and set fires on the streets, while police responded with water cannons and tear gas. The confusion continued until midnight on the 17th.

In central Lyon, a tourist information center was set on fire and engulfed in flames. In the central city of Limoges, famous for its porcelain, the city hall was also set ablaze. In the southern city of Marseille, a group of masked men forced their way into the city hall and toppled a bust of Marianne, the symbol of France. According to AFP news agency, the rioters were shouting "revolution".

Nearly 1,500 retail stores were attacked across the country, and the damage is expected to reach hundreds of millions of euros (tens of billions to tens of billions of yen). A man who runs a mobile phone shop in Marseille said on television, ``(The mob) destroyed everything and took everything away. I don't even know how long I can close my shop.''

President Macron stressed on social media that "violence will never be tolerated." "We will stand together against those who spread chaos," he said. "The far left has called for riots, turned protests into violence and attacked police," Interior Minister Nunez told reporters.