Use of tear gas: 410,000 people take part in protests in France

In France, hundreds of thousands are taking to the streets again this weekend. At first it remains largely quiet. In the late afternoon the mood heats up in several cities.

In the evening there were clashes with the police. Photo: Laurent Cipriani/AP/dpa

Paris. According to the French Interior Ministry, around 410,000 people took part in the protests in the country today. 110,000 of them demonstrated in the capital Paris. The march, organized by unions, had previously been moved by the authorities to the outskirts of the city. According to media reports, the CGT trade union association reported around 800,000 participants.

While no major incidents were initially reported, tensions began to emerge in the cities in the late afternoon and evening. Images from Paris showed clouds of tear gas and the use of water cannons, and banging noises could be heard in television recordings.

Clouds of tear gas were also seen in cities such as Lyon, Bordeaux and Marseille. Media reported clashes with the police. In the city of Nantes in northwestern France, damage and looting were reported in a shop, the responsible prefecture said. The security forces arrested six people. Looting was also reportedly observed elsewhere.

The young people who have been demonstrating for weeks for better equipment in schools have been joined by other groups, among other things to demonstrate against the high cost of living. Due to fears of riots and looting, such as those that took place on the sidelines of the rallies last weekend, there were bans on gatherings in certain zones and curfews in several cities. France's Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez had announced that 70,000 officers would be deployed on the streets.