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Paris Police Chief Warns Student Protest Movement Is “Out of Control” as Arrests Top 5,000
Paris police chief Patrice Faure said Saturday the student protest movement sweeping France is “out of control” in an open letter urging a return to peaceful action. About 5,000 people have been arrested since Monday and more than 600 officers injured, ahead of a national day of demonstrations called for Tuesday.
Why it matters
As France's high-school protest movement enters its second week, the Paris police chief made the authorities' toughest statement yet on Saturday, Oct. 3, declaring the movement “out of control” and saying those who launched it no longer control it — three days before student unions' planned national day of demonstrations.
Full report
In an open letter published on X, chief Patrice Faure wrote: “It is time to return to peaceful forms of action.” He called on students to abandon school blockades and unrest in favour of peaceful protest, said parents had a responsibility to steer their children away from what he described as “professional rioters” and their supporters, and warned authorities would respond firmly to violence and vandalism.
Reuters reports that around 5,000 people, mostly teenagers, have been arrested nationwide since Monday, with dozens injured. Agathe Foucault, a spokesperson for the national police, told RTL radio on Saturday that more than 600 police officers had also been injured, with property damage estimated in the tens of millions of euros. Riot police clashed with high-school students across France on Friday, and unions called for teachers to strike.
Student unions have called for a national day of demonstrations on Tuesday, Oct. 6. Security officials fear an organised protest in central Paris could be hijacked by far-left anarchist groups, sparking fresh violence. Students have voiced anger over overcrowded classrooms, teacher shortages and dilapidated buildings, blaming years of underinvestment.
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