Clashes and arrests mark nationwide French protests over school conditions and living costs

Demonstrations across France on Saturday, October 17, 2026, drew an estimated 550,000 people according to Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez, with clashes, fires and looting in several cities. Police arrested nearly 400 people. The Interior Ministry earlier reported 272 arrests after incidents in Paris, Marseille, Rennes and Angers.

In Paris, clashes occurred around the Place de la République before a march of about 110,000 people. Security forces used tear gas and a water cannon against masked demonstrators who fired fireworks mortars. In Lyon, the tourist office in a central square was set alight. Police used water cannon and tear gas to clear people blocking firefighters.

The protests brought together high school students, university students, Yellow Vest activists and climate campaigners. Grievances centered on the condition of lycée buildings, teacher shortages and rising living costs. Weeks of earlier student actions had already led to roughly 7,000 youths taken into police custody and nearly 1,000 police officers injured, according to official figures.

A 15-year-old boy’s hand was blown off in an earlier confrontation in Lens. Accounts differ on the cause. A police union source told AFP the boy appeared to have picked up a sting-ball grenade fired by officers. Rights groups have accused police of heavy-handed tactics against minors, including batons, tear gas and flash-ball guns. At least 200 pupils and dozens of teachers have been injured since the movement began.

President Emmanuel Macron said there is no place for violence. Nuñez stated that most protesters remained peaceful while a smaller number clashed with police, lit fires and looted businesses. Protesters carried signs demanding more teachers and decent learning conditions. One 19-year-old in Paris told reporters the cost of living is too high and that students are being attacked for asking for better schools.

The movement began at the Lycée Antoine-de-Saint-Exupéry in Créteil after videos of rats in school corridors circulated. It spread to more than 200 lycées blocked at various points. The government has opened dozens of investigations into police conduct while maintaining that order must be preserved.

Saturday’s turnout ranks among the larger days of protest in recent years. The combination of student anger over school infrastructure and broader economic complaints has produced sustained street action and repeated clashes with security forces.