Chaos in the streets of France: more than 1,200 arrested, 150 police detained, looting and fires...

France experienced a day of nationwide social protests on Saturday, backed by various groups—students, "yellow vests," and farmers—that degenerated into some of the worst riots and violent scenes remembered in the country since the "yellow vest" demonstrations of 2018. Chaos, clashes with the police, and looting left one person dead and 1,200 arrested, while 150 police officers and gendarmes were injured. French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu stated that there is a political maneuver behind this violence.

In a press appearance shortly before midnight on Saturday during a visit to express his support for law enforcement, Lecornu indicated that his Minister of Justice, Gerald Darmanin, has instructed prosecutors to request pre-trial detention for those arrested.

He justified these instructions on the grounds that those arrested present "particularly violent and dangerous profiles."

"We cannot allow a minority to destroy things and for it to always be the same people who pay," he added, after emphasizing that attempts had been made in Paris to attack "centers of power" such as the Élysée Palace, Matignon (the Prime Minister's official residence), and the National Assembly.

"Therefore, it is clearly a political maneuver that accepts violence," he added, stressing that "we will not be intimidated."

The mayors of Paris, Marseille, and Lyon—three of the cities hardest hit by destruction and looting—have requested a meeting with Lecornu early next week, "given the scale of the damage and the gravity of the situation" concerning the violence, vandalism, and looting that occurred in their cities on Saturday.

"We demand a precise assessment explaining the chain of events that led to this situation. This cannot and must not happen again," wrote Socialist Emmanuel Grégoire (Paris), left-wing independent Benoît Payan (Marseille), and Green party member Grégory Doucet (Lyon) in a joint statement.

The three elected officials stated that they are including all mayors of the affected municipalities in their initiative.

The demonstrations, which took place across the country with a long list of demands and were called by a diverse conglomerate of groups starting with students, as well as members of the "yellow vests" and public service employees, brought together 550,000 people according to the government, and up to more than 800,000 according to the organizers.

This massive turnout (110,000 in Paris alone, according to the Ministry of the Interior) vastly exceeded the expectations of the executive branch, which on the eve of the protests had estimated there would be at most 150,000 nationwide.