France’s Interior Ministry reported 504 arrests and 48 officers injured on Thursday, Oct. 8, during a day of student protests. Police used tear gas and water cannons, while 375 schools were fully or partly closed. The demonstrations began in late September and have increased pressure on the government over school conditions and public order.
Schools and public order
Officials counted 71,500 demonstrators nationwide, including 24,500 in Paris. The Interior Ministry separately said 55,000 people took part in “actions outside schools, only some of whom joined the demonstrations.” It reported increased violence. A separate France 24 report said police had made more than 6,600 arrests since late September.
At Hélène Boucher high school in northeastern Paris, students barricaded the entrance with garbage bins before police moved in. At Place de la Bastille, officers fired tear gas and used a water cannon after some protesters threw projectiles at riot police. Police later charged demonstrators with batons as they cleared the area. The Paris protest was mostly peaceful, though small groups occasionally clashed with police.
The Interior Ministry also reported that arsonists attacked a Bordeaux police station, vandals ransacked a school in Saint-Etienne, and a demonstrator struck a teacher in Toulouse. In Marseille, a teacher at Victor Hugo High School filed a criminal complaint over an alleged attack during protests. Authorities reported an investigation after a 17-year-old boy suffered a head injury outside a secondary school there. The government suspended stun-grenade use after a 15-year-old boy lost his hand in a clash with riot police.
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu described “violence, students and staff being attacked, police officers and gendarmes injured, schools set on fire or vandalized, thousands of hours of classes lost, not to mention threats and insults.” He said security forces hadn’t been ordered to confront high-school students, but to enforce the law. He also criticized “political leaders who use this anger to conduct their electoral battles,” adding, “We cannot play with the safety of France’s youth.”
Funding, staffing and the government response
Students have cited staff shortages and dilapidated buildings. Education Minister Édouard Geffray pledged to deploy 3,000 replacement teachers “in the coming days.” Lecornu said the government would deploy 3,024 supply teachers who weren’t assigned to classes, prioritizing 114 secondary schools facing the greatest difficulties. Geffray said teachers would receive assignments between Friday and Tuesday under a “contingency plan” to replace absent teachers.
Lecornu promised a plan to respond to the crisis by the end of October and said the government would propose amendments to the 2027 budget to turn some student proposals into measures. Students remained critical. “We don’t want words, we want action,” 17-year-old Camille told AFP in Nantes. Hanaa, 18, said she was “disappointed and unconvinced” by Lecornu’s remarks; fellow student Salyna, 17, said, “We expected more from him.”
The protests have also brought classroom complaints into view. Teacher Diane Di Sciullo, 28, said her class in Marseille had 37 students and that she had to ask them to find spare chairs and desks in neighbouring classrooms. Her placard read: “I’m a teacher and my students help me catch cockroaches in class.” Emma Khelil, an 18-year-old university student, described insulation problems and water leaks at her former high school and said she’d sometimes seen rats. Other students confirmed seeing rats.
Unions representing teachers, students and high-school pupils called for a nationwide strike on Tuesday, Oct. 13. Sabrine Kharbach, a student union spokesperson, said, “Until we have 10 billion euros on the table, we will continue to take action.” The French branch of UNICEF called for “a de-escalation of violence” and “the protection of minors,” and urged authorities to respect young people’s right to demonstrate peacefully.
Political pressure beyond France
Lecornu accused LFI, the largest single left-wing party in parliament, of stirring protests and pursuing a “political agenda” to “throw the country into chaos.” LFI accused police of a disproportionate response, including toward minors. France is due to hold a presidential election in April 2027, and Lecornu said some political leaders were using the demonstrations for electoral battles.
Protests also took place in Belgium and Italy. In Liege, mayor Willy Demeyer banned public gatherings until midnight on Oct. 16, citing a “real, serious and imminent risk” of further clashes and vandalism. In Italy, students occupied schools and marched over education funding and building conditions. In Naples, students added opposition to a planned migrant detention centre to their demands.