Officers fired tear gas as demonstrators hurled cobblestones during nationwide rallies demanding better learning conditions
Clashes between protesters and police continued in Paris on Tuesday as high school and university students staged their fifth round of nationwide demonstrations demanding better learning conditions.
In the capital, the most intense clashes took place at Place Vauban, a square near Les Invalides, the historic military complex housing Napoleon’s tomb.
Police fired volleys of tear gas, while protesters hurled cobblestones and launched fireworks at officers.
More than 6,800 people have been detained since the demonstrations began last month, when students joined striking public sector workers. Around 161,500 people attended rallies on Tuesday, including 41,500 in Paris, according to the Interior Ministry. Organizers, meanwhile, put nationwide turnout at 480,000.
La tension ne retombe pas place Vauban. Les forces de l’ordre multiplient les charges et l’emploi de grenades pour repousser les manifestants en marge de la manifestation des lycéens et étudiants. https://t.co/Ac8YyhJ2Cz
While government officials acknowledged the legitimacy of students’ grievances, they blamed far-left activists for the violence and accused La France Insoumise (LFI), the third-largest party in parliament, of inciting unrest. The party rejected the allegations and called on protesters to refrain from violence.
Regain de tensions dans le cortège parisien de la mobilisation des lycéens et étudiants, les forces de l’ordre sont visées par des tirs de mortiers d’artifice et des projectiles https://t.co/0UL198v5VV
Une voiture a été incendiée en marge de la manifestation des lycéens et étudiants. Intervention des forces de l’ordre et des pompiers. https://t.co/lQ04gw7Bn1
Interior Minister Laurent Nunez also accused the left-wing groups Le Poing Leve and Revolution Permanente of encouraging violence during student protests in the Paris suburbs. Both groups rejected the allegations, accusing the minister of overseeing a “brutal crackdown.”
Students and trade unions, in turn, accused police of using excessive force. The General Inspectorate of the National Police (IGPN), France’s internal police watchdog, is investigating 36 cases of alleged misconduct.
On Tuesday, a police officer was charged with “aggravated violence” in connection with an incident in Tours on September 30, when a 16-year-old student lost an eye after being struck by a projectile fired from an LBD, a police weapon that fires less-lethal rounds.
In an effort to address students’ demands, Education Minister Édouard Geffray said on Tuesday that the government had begun deploying 3,000 substitute teachers to high schools facing the most severe staff shortages.
