Molotov cocktail attacks injured several officers as nationwide cost-of-living protests descended into violence.
Rioters hurled incendiary devices at police in Paris as another wave of cost-of-living protests swept across France on Saturday.
Five law enforcement officers were injured, including three by Molotov cocktails, according to police.
Interior Minister Laurent Nunez described the attacks as “attempted murder.”
Videos from the scene show a Molotov cocktail being thrown at officers standing in formation with riot shields. One officer catches fire and is quickly engulfed in flames before a colleague uses a fire extinguisher to put out the blaze.
Plusieurs cocktails molotov jetés contre les forces de l’ordre à Paris.
In a separate incident, an incendiary device was thrown at a group of officers during a standoff in the middle of a street, briefly setting one officer’s legs on fire.
Police fired volleys of tear gas and stun grenades as rioters threw bottles and other projectiles.
A Paris police officer’s leg caught fire on Halloween after a device hurled at officers detonated, as protests across France pressed on. https://t.co/Ko5gAee4Ez
“The burning sensation is immediate, intense and grows stronger over time,” an unnamed gendarme injured by an incendiary device told BFMTV. “I couldn’t see it because you can’t look everywhere at once, and the barrage of projectiles was relentless,” he added.
After watching footage of the incident, the gendarme said, “It made me realize that we may have narrowly avoided a catastrophe.”
FRENCH COPS FORCED BACK as RIOTERS KEEP HURLING FIREBOMBS https://t.co/qNb1SRuv7k
Around 320,000 people rallied across France on Saturday, including 70,000 in Paris, according to the Interior Ministry. Organizers put the turnout at 500,000 nationwide, including 200,000 in the capital. Police said 565 people were arrested.
Paris authorities imposed a partial overnight curfew from 11pm to 6am in the areas around Place de la Republique, Place du Chatelet and Les Halles on Saturday and Sunday nights.
Although many demonstrations began peacefully, “radical elements” instigated riots in several cities, according to police. Nunez said there had been “calls for people to gather at 8pm to take advantage of Halloween night, wear masks and engage in looting, vandalism or attacks on public buildings.”
French media also reported incidents of alleged police brutality, with Le Monde describing officers striking apparently non-threatening protesters in Paris and two young men reportedly injured during arrests in Grenoble.
The protests began in September with high school students demanding better educational facilities, more teachers and increased funding. Separately, trade unions and Yellow Vest activists mobilized against rising living costs and fuel prices. The movements converged on October 17, bringing students, workers and other protesters together in nationwide demonstrations that have since broadened to include demands for civil liberties and an end to police violence.
