France’s high-school demonstrations entered their fifth consecutive day Friday, and the United Nations said it was following the protests “with concern” after some incidents turned violent. The protests have put pressure on the national government over staffing, overcrowding and school conditions. Separately, a dispute at the European Parliament in Strasbourg prompted allegations of antisemitism.
School Crisis and Public Order
France’s Education Ministry said 141 of the country’s 3,700 high schools were closed Friday. Since mid-September, police had taken nearly 7,000 people into custody, the Justice Ministry said; 86% of them were minors. Mostly aged 15 to 18, students have protested teacher shortages, overcrowded timetables, deteriorating facilities and buildings ill-equipped for rising temperatures.
Most demonstrations were peaceful. Some protesters, though, set fires and vandalised bus shelters. Police used tear gas, batons and blast balls. Human rights groups and student protesters accused officers of excessive force, while authorities opened 18 internal investigations into alleged police misconduct.
Shabia Mantoo, spokesperson for the UN human rights agency, said: “We are following with concern incidents related to the student protests and high school blockades in France, some of which have turned violent.” Demonstrations continued across the country as the UN issued its statement.
Late Thursday, Education Minister Edouard Geffray announced that around 3,000 substitute teachers would be deployed in the coming days to cover shortages in the 114 high schools most affected by the protests. After meeting three major student groups Thursday afternoon, he also announced the deployment of more than 3,000 substitute teachers without current assignments and the hiring of hundreds of additional staff.
Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu pledged to introduce a plan addressing the crisis by the end of October. Economy Minister Roland Lescure said the government could meet demands for additional school funding despite tight constraints on the 2027 budget. Under the current draft, education would receive the second-largest funding increase after defence, as spending rises 1.4% to €90.9 billion.
Student union representative Marius Mesnil rejected the proposed response. “we're being offered a few crumbs,” he said, calling for another wave of demonstrations Tuesday. Thousands of students took to the streets the previous day over long school days, overcrowding and teacher absences. Images showed Paris’s Place de la Bastille packed with demonstrators; clashes with police were reported by evening.
Budget Pressure and European Institutions
France’s worsening economic outlook and deepening sovereign debt crisis have added pressure as the government considers school spending. The country’s 10-year yield reached 4.96% Thursday, its highest since July 2002, while the already-high deficit was projected to rise next year.
EU Economy Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis urged France Thursday to pass a budget and calm bond markets. After a meeting of Eurogroup finance ministers in Luxembourg, he said: “Putting in place a sound budget for the next year will be important to ensure this predictability and credibility and to reassure markets. I'm in contact with (French Finance) Minister (Roland) Lescure on this.”
People familiar with discussions in Luxembourg said European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde was asked about sovereign spreads. She declined to comment specifically on France and said the ECB had the instruments needed to counter disorderly market dynamics. Earlier that week, Bank of France chief Emmanuel Moulin said ECB intervention wasn’t needed in the “current conditions.”
Dispute at the European Parliament
France Unbowed MEP Rima Hassan defended removing an Israeli flag from an October 7 commemoration at the European Parliament in Strasbourg. Photographs showed the Israeli flag on the floor alongside the EU flag, prompting widespread backlash and allegations of antisemitism against Hassan.
In an interview with Euronews, Hassan described the act as a protest against the Israeli state. She said: “I maintain my absolute opposition to the Israeli embassy being invited to the European Parliament, just as the Russian embassy is strictly prohibited from organising or co-organising events, from addressing the Parliament, or from having a platform there.”
Hassan said she reviewed CCTV footage of the incident with European Parliament President Roberta Metsola. According to Hassan, the footage showed her “rather softly, taking the Israeli flag down from its stand.” She denied intentionally knocking down the EU flag and said neither flag was “trampled on, thrown about or damaged.” Asked whether she regretted how she expressed her views, she said: “Sometimes, a political mandate can be accompanied by an activist gesture, a symbolic gesture.”