Paris, 20 October. French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu announced a "massive" security deployment for nationwide protests against the high cost of living planned for Saturday, and accused ultra-left groups of fomenting an "insurrection" in last weekend's riots.
Interior Minister Laurent Nunez promised to step up resources and responsiveness. Overnight curfews in several cities were extended for another night where the situation requires, and the Paris police prefecture banned carrying fuel and flammable gas in containers, carrying protective equipment within 100 metres of schools and universities and buying fireworks until Thursday. Nearly 150 people have already been sentenced to prison terms over the riots of 17 October, Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin said.
US President Donald Trump offered his own take: the protesters, he said, "don't love their country", and he blamed immigrants. The protests themselves began over fuel and food prices, conditions in schools and the state of public services.
What it means: The French authorities are preparing for a new wave of protests against the cost of living as a threat to public order: a "massive" deployment, bans on carrying fuel in containers and about 150 sentences for those involved in the previous riots.
Who benefits: The tough measures target those who smashed and burned last weekend; for the rest of the protesters the causes of discontent — fuel and food prices, schools and public services — remain the same.
Background: Last weekend, according to Anadolu, about 550,000 people took part in 110 demonstrations across France.
List of sources used: Anadolu, France 24, TASS, CGTN
Artificial intelligence was used in preparing this material.
