Paris police said Sunday that 855 people were arrested in the French capital region after violent groups clashed with officers and looted shops during a protest march that drew about 110,000 people
PARIS (AP) — Paris police said Sunday that 855 people were arrested in the French capital region after violent groups clashed with officers and looted shops during a protest march that drew about 110,000 people who denounced rising living costs and poor conditions in schools.
Violent clashes, fires and looting on Saturday marred demonstrations across France. Authorities said groups of masked protesters targeted public buildings, including city halls and local government offices.
Authorities said about 550,000 people took part in protests across France, while organisers counted about 800,000.
One person died of a heart attack, Paris police said in a statement, without providing further details. French media reported a protester suffered a medical emergency in the street during the march.
Thirteen police and gendarmerie officers and two firefighters were injured, the statement said.
Around Paris' Place de la Republique on Sunday morning, dislodged cobblestones, shattered storefronts and broken glass marked the aftermath of the events. Looting and damage were reported around the square and in some other tourist and shopping areas in the city centre.
Police said groups numbering from several hundred to more than 1,000 people formed unauthorised marches across central Paris on Saturday. “By late afternoon, a new phase began with the arrival of large numbers of people whose sole aim was to steal and loot, taking advantage of the unrest,” police said.
Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu and Interior Minister Laurent Nunez attributed some of the violence to “radical far-left groups” and said others later joined to loot.
“Peaceful demonstrations have every place in our Republic. Arson, looting and attacks do not,” Lecornu said in a message posted on X.
The mayors of Paris, Marseille and Lyon, the country's three largest cities, requested a meeting with the prime minister in the coming days “given the extent of the damage and the seriousness of the situation.”
In the southern port city of Marseille, some protesters briefly forced their way into the lobby of City Hall and a police station was damaged. In Lyon, a fire broke out inside a tourist office.
In the central town of Limoges, the City Hall was set on fire, gutting the 19th-century building and collapsing the roof. Haute-Vienne prefect Maurice Barate told LCI television that the blaze, which was under control Sunday, was deliberate.