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Hundreds of thousands of mostly young protesters took to the streets across France on Saturday in a third consecutive weekend of demonstrations over living costs and education. About 70,000 police and gendarmes were deployed nationwide, while similar youth-led demonstrations were also reported in Germany, Portugal, and the Netherlands.
Turnout and Security Measures in France
France’s government estimated that 320,000 people protested nationwide on Saturday, reflecting a lower turnout than previous weeks. Mass demonstrations on Oct. 17 drew more than 500,000 people, while protests on Oct. 24 brought out 410,000, according to official figures, though organizers reported much higher numbers. Authorities reported roughly 300 arrests nationwide, a decrease from 800 at the same stage during the previous week’s rallies.
French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez warned of a very high risk of disorder, particularly after dark on Halloween, following previous weekends marred by riots and looting. In Paris, authorities moved the main march to the eastern edge of the city near Porte de Bagnolet to reduce the risk of unrest around government buildings and tourist sites. The Interior Ministry estimated that 70,000 people participated in the main Paris march, which was led by students holding hands and monitored by labor union security agents alongside massed police.
Demonstrators carried diverse grievances, with high school students, climate activists, and cost-of-living protesters displaying separate banners. Corentin Cabreux, a 21-year-old student, described living in a state-run residence with peeling walls, damp stains, cockroaches, and rats. The march along the Boulevards des Maréchaux remained joyful for hours, featuring techno music and a police helicopter hovering overhead.
Clashes and Curfews in Paris
As dusk fell, clashes erupted near Porte de Charenton where the march ended, with protesters throwing glass bottles and fireworks at police. Officers responded with tear gas and stun grenades, filling the air with smoke and causing peaceful marchers to cough, tear up, and flee into the Bois de Vincennes park.
The movement began last month among high school students opposing neglected buildings, teacher shortages, and an unfair university admissions system, later drawing in labor unions and supporters of President Emmanuel Macron. While most protesters remained peaceful, groups of troublemakers targeted police with projectiles, prompting harsh responses of tear gas, water cannons, and dispersion grenades that caused severe injuries.
To protect shops, Macron and police restricted marches from city centers, barred entry to Place de la Republique and Les Halles during weekend nighttime hours, and imposed a 9 p.m. curfew on unaccompanied minors around the Champs-Elysees, despite a Paris court suspending an earlier minor curfew as an illegal restriction on movement.
Protests Across Germany, Portugal and the Netherlands
In Germany, a youth initiative named “Gen Z regelt” organized rallies in more than 30 cities to demand investments in education, health, and climate protection, while opposing a return of military conscription. In Berlin, high school student Lara Breitenbach stated that youth are demanding investments in social services and education because they will live with the consequences the longest. Another student, Janelle Schulz, highlighted collapsing ceilings from water damage and broken toilets at her school.
German police ended a march early in Cologne after protesters used pyrotechnics and threw stones, while water cannons and tear gas were deployed to disperse crowds in Hamburg, Frankfurt, and Cologne after protesters burned barricades and injured police officers.
In Portugal, thousands of protesters including families converged in Lisbon to peacefully demonstrate against the housing crisis, carrying signs such as “Houses or Fire” and “We are not Afraid.” Meanwhile, in The Hague, Netherlands, a heavy police presence secured downtown shopping areas following online protest appeals, leading to identity checks of black-clad youths and precautionary boarded-up stores, though no major disturbances occurred by midafternoon.
