France mobilises 70,000 police and gendarmes for Saturday protests

France will deploy some 70,000 police officers and gendarmes nationwide during a fresh round of protests this weekend, Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said on Friday, as President Emmanuel Macron met with student organisations at the Élysée Palace for the first time since the high school protests started more than a month ago.

Issued on: 23/10/2026 - 15:00Modified: 23/10/2026 - 18:21

The government is trying to prevent a repeat of last weekend’s widespread violence, while also addressing some of the grievances driving the protest movement.

Around 20 high school representatives arrived at the Élysée at 3pm for talks with Macron, who the presidency said wanted to hear their “demands and concerns”.

Messages urging violence and looting were already circulating on social media, Nuñez warned, as authorities face mounting pressure to restore order after protests against the rising cost of living turned chaotic last weekend.

“We have noted numerous calls coming from the ultra-left and the radical far-left movements,” Nuñez told a news conference on Friday.

The damage to shops and public buildings is estimated at several hundred million euros.

Some 2,700 people have been taken into police custody in connection with the riots and looting, the Justice Ministry said. A total of 232 people have now been jailed and more than 1,000 brought before prosecutors or judges, Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin said on Friday.

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Student demands

The high school protests began last month over teacher shortages, the poor condition of school buildings and other problems in the education system, before spreading to universities and becoming part of a wider mobilisation over the cost of living and the state of public services.

“We cannot leave these young people – us, high school and university students – without any answers. It’s not possible,” Nathanaël Combary, president of Renouveau lycéen ("High School Renewal"), a student organisation, told French news agency AFP ahead of the talks.

Student groups have also called for changes to Parcoursup, France’s university admissions system. Friday was the final day for submissions to Agora, an online platform set up by the government to collect complaints and proposals from high school pupils. 

Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu is due to hold broader talks on Monday involving high school and university organisations, teachers, trade unions, employers, local authorities and MPs.

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Security deployment

The 70,000 security personnel will include police officers and gendarmes from local forces across the country, as well as elite police units, Nuñez said.

Around 20 armoured vehicles and 15 water cannon trucks will also be deployed across France.

The Yellow Vest movement, which emerged in 2018 to protest the high cost of fuel, plans to march through central Paris on Saturday.

However, only demonstrations organised by trade unions have been authorised. One union march has been authorised in Marseille, while demonstrations have been banned across large parts of central Lyon.

Night-time curfews are in place in parts of several big cities, including Paris, Marseille, Lyon, Nice and Montpellier.

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Protest restrictions

France’s main student union, UNEF, has also called for rallies on Saturday. It said its demonstrations would go ahead despite the restrictions announced by the government.

“Macron is trampling upon the freedom to protest in our country, and is spitting on the values of the Republic he claims to defend,” the union said in a statement.

In Paris, unions were meanwhile resisting an attempt by the police prefecture to change the route of Saturday’s authorised demonstration.

Organisers said they would gather at Bastille as planned, after authorities proposed moving the march to a route between Porte de Vincennes and Porte d’Italie.

Despite the restrictions and added security, many businesses, institutions and events were planning to close this weekend.

The Marseille Chamber of Commerce urged businesses to shut on Saturday, while the organisers of Art Basel Paris said the art fair would be closed all weekend. The Louvre and the Fondation Louis Vuitton will be closed on Saturday.

(with newswires)

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