This evening we all feel anger and shame''. The French president, Emmanuel Macron, said this while addressing the nation after the chaos and devastation on the sidelines of yesterday's demonstrations in France. "Nothing justifies violence," added the French leader. "Whoever destroyed must pay, whoever looted must reimburse", Macron continued in his speech, expressing solidarity with the police. "Yesterday, despite their professionalism, the police forces suffered unprecedented violence. I asked the government to draw all the necessary lessons regarding intelligence activity; there will be maximum transparency. The investigations will be conducted with the utmost firmness", he underlined again.
"Incredible violence in cities" reported
"Seeing the cities, the streets of our cities devastated in this way is unbearable," the president also said. The head of state denounced "the incredible violence in our cities", recalling that "public buildings, shops and town halls were attacked and in some cases destroyed" and that hundreds of police officers were injured. "When we saw those images, we all asked ourselves: what did they have in mind? How could the French do this to France?", said Macron, underlining that "there is nothing that justifies" the violence and damage caused by the unrest.
The position
"We will be intransigent. Listening and dialogue mean neither weakness nor impunity." Macron said it again, announcing possible restrictions on demonstrations after Saturday's violence. "The prefects will make decisions together with the mayors to protect our cities, public buildings and commercial activities", explained the head of state, specifying that the measures could go as far as "banning some gatherings" and taking "any necessary action". Macron also called on political parties, professional organizations and trade unions to "unambiguously condemn all violence and call for calm". "The country needs order, détente and not escalation", he underlined.
A discussion with the students
The president announced that as early as this week the government will start discussions with high school and university students, teachers, unions, business associations and local administrators to identify answers to young people's concerns. "We cannot ask our young people to believe in the future without giving them the opportunity to build responses and sit at the table", said Macron, reiterating his desire to combine dialogue on social demands with firmness towards those responsible for the violence.
The count of damage and injuries
Meanwhile, damage and injuries are being counted in the aftermath of the protests against the high cost of living in France, which resulted in violent clashes with the police. Thousands of people have been stopped across the country, as announced by the Minister of the Interior, Laurent Nunez. Yesterday he said, "violent acts were committed by several thousand individuals from the far left", who were then "joined by criminals who looted and devastated numerous businesses". In detail, around 2,400 people were stopped today in France during the day of mobilization against the high cost of living, marked by episodes of violence; almost a thousand policemen and gendarmes were injured, seven of them seriously, according to a consolidated balance sheet from the Ministry of the Interior. In particular, 2,397 arrests were made during a day that degenerated into chaos, characterized by numerous acts of violence and looting. In total, 997 policemen and gendarmes suffered injuries, seven of them seriously.
Moments of tension today too
Even today, in the aftermath of the mobilizations that turned into guerrilla warfare. New clashes and looting occurred in Place de la République in Paris. Riot officers from the CRS 8 company, specialized in combating urban violence in France, were mobilized on site, in light of the new scenes of chaos in the heart of the capital. Among other things, the 'Petite Mendigote' shop, located on rue Beaurepaire, was ransacked in a few seconds by some troublemakers. The same street, a stone's throw from Place de la République, had already been the scene of serious violence yesterday, with the looting of a Franprix supermarket and a bistro set on fire. The Paris prefecture had reported further tensions in the Place de la Repubblica this afternoon, when the police intervened "to disperse and stop" participants in an "unauthorized" gathering in the square symbolizing the Parisian protests. "An appeal had been launched on social networks for an unauthorized gathering, scheduled for today at 2pm in the Place de la République," the prefecture explained to Agence France Presse. To avoid a spontaneous demonstration, the police "carried out checks" and "set up a safety device", so as to be able to "intervene quickly, if necessary". Faced with the first tensions, the officers approached to disperse and stop the participants: as can be seen from the images broadcast by television stations, the police briefly used tear gas and by around 3.15 pm the situation was back under control.
Trump and Vance: "Blame uncontrolled immigration"
Donald Trump intervened aggressively on the violent protests, attributing the responsibility for the unrest to immigration and then proposing his recipe: a draconian tightening of the rules on migration policies. "France is on fire! The immigration of people from a completely different world, people who have hatred in their hearts, has shattered what was once a great country," the US president wrote in Truth. "Close the borders and regain control, before it's too late!", added the tycoon, shortly after also posting a video to testify to the gravity of the devastation caused by the rioters. That of the tycoon was not the only attack by the administration against Paris, which is dealing with the widespread damage caused by the violence and the consequent growing pressure on President Emmanuel Macron six months before the elections for his succession: a few hours before his post on Truth, Vice President JD Vance also expressed in similar and very harsh tones about the events in France: "Western liberals imported the Third World into France and other countries in the name of diversity and compassion. They ignored fundamental issues such as assimilation and compatibility. They were warned that it would come to this, but they did not listen," Vance wrote in a post on extraordinary, put an end to this madness, before more of his monuments go up in flames"
