Mostly peaceful protests across France over a worsening cost-of-living crisis and growing inequality descended into violence for a second straight weekend.
France’s Interior Ministry said 410,000 people took part in protests in several major cities, including Paris.
After rioters set fire to the historic city hall in Limoges and looters smashed supermarkets and luxury boutiques in Lyon last weekend, French authorities greatly stepped up security ahead of Saturday’s protests.
In Paris on Saturday, riot police fired tear gas and water cannon to disperse a group of around 500 hooded youths who hurled stones at officers, Reuters quoted a security official as saying.
In France’s second city, Marseille, youths dragged large metal sheets to block a street, set fire to rubbish bins, and hurled rocks and bottles at riot police. The confrontations continued after sunset, and police said looters raided two jewelry shops, according to a Reuters report.
Clashes also flared in Lyon, Bordeaux and Grenoble, while police fired volleys of tear gas at demonstrators in Clermont-Ferrand, Lille, Nantes and Nice, according to the agency.
However, the violence was still less intense than a week ago, when looters and vandals went on the rampage in a number of French cities.
The demonstrations began last month as a group of high school students in suburban Paris lamented poor school conditions, including teacher shortages and unsatisfactory facilities. The demonstrations have since grown and evolved into nationwide protests.
France’s economic and political woes have sharply raised the cost of government borrowing. The yield on its 10-year bond rose above 5% for the first time since 2002 this week, settling around 5.03% on Friday.
Some investors fear the country’s debt problems could spread to the rest of the euro zone.
Protesters and police face off during a demonstration against the rising cost of living in Rennes, France, on October 24, 2026. (Photo by Vernault Quentin/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Nurphoto | Nurphoto | Getty Images
A demonstrator wearing goggles and a keffiyeh over their face as tear gas spreads across the street during a protest over education funding and rising living costs in Paris, France, on October 24, 2026. (Photo by Clement Souchet/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Nurphoto | Nurphoto | Getty Images
A group of police officers from a unit of the motorised anti-violence squad (BRAV-M) caught in a cloud of tear gas, Tension and clashes between violent demonstrators and police forces on the Cours de Vincennes towards the end of the march, Act 2 of the protests against the high cost of living, in support of purchasing power, the protection of public services, and fiscal and social justice, in Paris, France on October 24, 2026. (Photo by Amaury Cornu / Hans Lucas / AFP via Getty Images)
Amaury Cornu | Afp | Getty Images
Portrait of a father and his young son posing together during a demonstration, the boy holding a handwritten cardboard placard reading LES COLLEGIENS ON EST LA ! (We are here, too, as middle school students!), in Paris, France, on October 24, 2026. Initially driven by high school students demanding better learning conditions, the movement has also brought together younger pupils and their families, highlighting the involvement of different generations in defending education and shaping their future. (Photo by Aruallan / Hans Lucas / AFP via Getty Images)
Aruallan | Afp | Getty Images
In the crowd, a protester holds a sign that reads In 2026, democracy has two tools, the baton and Article 49.3, in Nantes, western France, on October 24, 2026. A demonstration known as Act 2, organized by high school students, politicians, labor unions, and the Yellow Vests, in support of the right to protest, against the high cost of living, and for better conditions in education, work, and daily life, under heavy police surveillance. (Photo by Maylis Rolland / Hans Lucas / AFP via Getty Images)
Maylis Rolland | Afp | Getty Images
As the procession passes beneath the emergency room of the university hospital, a protester holds up a sign that reads Eat the rich, in Nantes, western France, on October 24, 2026. A demonstration known as Act 2, organized by high school students, politicians, labor unions, and the Yellow Vests, in support of the right to protest, against the high cost of living, and for better conditions in education, work, and daily life, under heavy police surveillance. (Photo by Maylis Rolland / Hans Lucas / AFP via Getty Images)
Maylis Rolland | Afp | Getty Images
A protester holds a sign that reads, I dream of another world, in Nantes, western France, on October 24, 2026. A demonstration known as Act 2, organized by high school students, politicians, labor unions, and the Yellow Vests, in support of the right to protest, against the high cost of living, and for better conditions in education, work, and daily life, under heavy police surveillance. (Photo by Maylis Rolland / Hans Lucas / AFP via Getty Images)
Maylis Rolland | Afp | Getty Images
Three demonstrators wearing Spider-Man costumes or masks point at one another as other participants watch and record the scene during a protest for increased education funding and against rising living costs in Paris, France, on October 24, 2026. (Photo by Clement Souchet/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Nurphoto | Nurphoto | Getty Images
Demonstrators carry large hand-painted banners during a march calling for increased funding for schools and universities and measures against rising living costs in Paris, France, on October 24, 2026. (Photo by Clement Souchet/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Nurphoto | Nurphoto | Getty Images
Police officers carrying batons and shields face demonstrators gathered on a pavement, several with their hands raised, during a protest for increased education funding and against rising living costs in Paris, France, on October 24, 2026. (Photo by Clement Souchet/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Nurphoto | Nurphoto | Getty Images
Around 800,000 people demonstrated across France, including 250,000 in Paris, according to the CGT. The march in Paris began at 2 pm from the Porte d’Italie and headed for the Porte de Vincennes after the route was changed by the Police Headquarters at the last minute. October 24, 2026. (Photo by Telmo Pinto/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Nurphoto | Nurphoto | Getty Images
French riot police walk in a street amid clashes with protesters during an authorized demonstration organized by labor unions in Paris as part of nationwide protests called by the “Yellow Vests” movement joined by French high school and university students against the cost of living and rising fuel prices, in France, on Oct. 24, 2026.
Dylan Martinez | Reuters
