Clashes erupt in France as ‘Black Thursday’ protests sweep the nation

PARIS — Riot police clashed with protesters in Lyon on Thursday as a nationwide public sector strike tapped into growing anger over deteriorating services and the rising cost of living. Paris’ iconic Eiffel Tower was closed because of the strike. Officers clad in black helmets and protective clothing charged at crowds in Lyon after the demonstrations against rising living costs and in support of the high school protest movement turned violent and fires were set in the streets. Water cannons were also deployed. Some of the protesters wore gas masks and safety glasses as a precaution against tear gas. Images from Paris showed students and other protesters facing off against riot police. Police were “keeping the situation under control, but it remains tense,” the French Interior Ministry said in a statement at 1 p.m. local time (7 a.m. ET). “Several violent acts have been committed as part of the high school student movement,” the statement said. After fireworks were fired at a school near the southern city of Toulouse, a fire broke out “that burned the student services office,” it added. In the city of Rennes in northwest France, metal pétanque balls were thrown at officers, the statement said, adding that police had been pelted with other projectiles in the cities of Pau and Orleans. Around 250 rallies against rising living costs had been planned in cities and towns across the country and hundreds of thousands of people would likely turn out, unions said before the events kicked off. France’s main unions, including the CGT and CNT representing public and private sector workers, and the UNEF, representing students, warned the government of President Emmanuel Macron’s that the country was on the brink or recession. “Everything is going up except wages and pensions,” they said in a joint statement. “Anger is immense.” “The situation in this country is fragile. The pressing social and environmental challenges must be addressed without delay,” the statement added. The movement grew from a student protest over staff shortages at the Antoine de Saint-Exupéry High School in Créteil, a southeastern suburb of Paris. Videos of the blockade spread on social media, and soon protests expanded to high schools across the nation. As the movement grew, the list of grievances expanded beyond the failings of the public school system to encompass broader economic, political and social dissatisfaction. Soon, university students, teachers, parents and politicians also joined. Hundreds of thousands of protesters have since taken to the streets as the demonstrations expanded, with participants holding signs criticizing the far-right National Rally party and warning of the risks of climate change and artificial intelligence. A multitude of Palestinian flags have also been seen. Macron, who will leave office in May, convened a defense ‌and security meeting Wednesday ahead of the protests. Later, Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said that 70,000 police officers would be deployed Thursday, backed by armored vehicles, drones and helicopters. Police have previously been criticized for injuring protesters with heavy-handed tactics. Last month, a 15-year-old was maimed by a sting ball grenade fired by police and a 14-year-old suffered a jaw fracture in a similar incident. Several other have also suffered life-changing injuries and a 59-year-old man, identified as Christophe M, died Oct. 17 of “a critical cardio-respiratory failing” after leaving Paris’ Place de la République which had been tear-gassed be police. An investigation into his death is ongoing. Zacharie Petit reported from Paris and Henry Austin from London.