{"id":9644,"date":"2026-10-18T14:05:58","date_gmt":"2026-10-18T14:05:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=9644"},"modified":"2026-10-18T14:05:58","modified_gmt":"2026-10-18T14:05:58","slug":"french-police-arrest-1800-after-violent-clashes-and-looting-mar-protests","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=9644","title":{"rendered":"French police arrest 1,800 after violent clashes and looting mar protests"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A person walks over debris in Paris, France, Sunday, the day after clashes during a national day of demonstrations against the cost of living and rising fuel prices. Reuters-Yonhap<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

PARIS \u2014 Police arrested at least 1,800 people across France after violent groups clashed with officers and looted shops during nationwide demonstrations that drew hundreds of thousands of people who denounced rising living costs and poor conditions in schools.<\/p>\n

Authorities said masked groups on Saturday set fires and attacked public buildings, including city halls, in several cities.<\/p>\n

In Limoges, a city in central France, flames engulfed the 19th-century City Hall, causing its roof to collapse. Haute-Vienne prefect Maurice Barate told LCI television that the fire was deliberately set and nearly destroyed the building. The fire was under control Sunday.<\/p>\n

French President Emmanuel Macron will hold an emergency meeting with top government officials on Sunday afternoon, before addressing the nation at 8 p.m., according to his office.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe right to protest is a fundamental right. Deliberately and collectively sowing disorder through violence is not,” Interior Minister Laurent Nu\u00f1ez wrote on X, pointing to the lootings of hundreds of businesses in Paris, Marseille, Lyon, Bordeaux, Rennes, Strasbourg, Grenoble, Nice, Limoges and other cities.<\/p>\n

Nu\u00f1ez and Prime Minister S\u00e9bastien Lecornu attributed some of the violence to \u201cradical far-left groups\u201d and said others later joined to loot.<\/p>\n

Paris police said Sunday that 855 people were arrested in the French capital region alone. About 550,000 took part in protests across France, according to authorities, while organizers counted about 800,000. More than 500 police officers, gendarmes and firefighters were injured, Nu\u00f1ez said.<\/p>\n

One person died of a heart attack, Paris police said in a statement, without providing details. Paris prosecutors’ office said it was investigating.<\/p>\n

Around Paris’ Place de la R\u00e9publique on Sunday morning, dislodged cobblestones, shattered storefronts and broken glass marked the aftermath of the events. Looting and damage were reported around the square and in some other tourist and shopping areas in the city center.<\/p>\n

Police said groups numbering from several hundred to more than 1,000 people formed unauthorized marches across central Paris on Saturday. \u201cBy late afternoon, a new phase began with the arrival of large numbers of people whose sole aim was to steal and loot, taking advantage of the unrest,\u201d police said.<\/p>\n

The mayors of Paris, Marseille and Lyon, the country’s three largest cities, requested a meeting with the prime minister in the coming days \u201cgiven the extent of the damage and the seriousness of the situation.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the southern port city of Marseille, some protesters briefly forced their way into the lobby of City Hall and a group of people wearing hoods and masks damaged a police station. In Lyon, a fire broke out inside a tourist office.<\/p>\n

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A person walks over debris in Paris, France, Sunday, the day after clashes during a national day of demonstrations against the cost of living and rising fuel prices. Reuters-Yonhap PARIS \u2014 Police arrested at least 1,800 people across France after violent groups clashed with officers and looted shops during nationwide demonstrations that drew hundreds of…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9645,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_2277560469115098_106292521332774":"","twitter_aToxNzczMzI3Njk4OTg4ODUxMjAxOw==_1773327698988851200":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_templately_pack_id":"","_templately_imported_at":"","_templately_source":"","_templately_import_session_id":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[16,14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9644","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-korea","category-trending-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t