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Protests in France over teacher shortages and the poor condition of school buildings have been accompanied by violence. More than 400 schools and other educational institutions across the country remained closed on Friday. Dozens of people were injured during demonstrations, and 2,000 have been detained since the protests began.
Number of detainees reaches 2,000
Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin told RTL radio that the demonstrations began over conditions in schools before spreading to various parts of the country. About two-thirds of those detained were taken into police custody, he said.
“An active and violence-prone minority is taking part in the protests. We are not even entirely sure they are actually secondary school students,” the minister said.
Darmanin said attacks on buses and the burning of schools were no longer simply protests but had become a public-order issue. Education Minister Édouard Geffray said late Thursday that slightly more than 400 educational institutions would be closed on Friday.
Schools and vehicles set on fire
One of the most serious incidents on Thursday was reported in Marseille. At Victor Hugo high school, fuel splashed onto two teachers as a student tried to pour gasoline into a trash bin. Outside the city’s Saint-Exupéry high school, hundreds of young people forced firefighters to leave their vehicle, which was later set on fire. Public transport services were suspended after workers were injured.
A school was set on fire in Nantes, while another building in Le Havre was damaged by fire. A car was set alight in Strasbourg, and clashes broke out between security forces and young people in Toulouse.
In Saint-Denis, near Paris, one student in a gathering held a sign reading, “Can we talk without you firing tear gas at us?” Students have accused police of a heavy-handed response, including the use of tear gas and weapons that fire rubber bullets.
The government condemned violence during the demonstrations while acknowledging the need to address problems in schools. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said provocateurs had been moving between schools in some areas to incite violence. Geffray advised switching to remote classes if protesters prevented students from entering schools.
Political dispute over who started the protests
A source close to Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said intelligence agencies told a government crisis meeting on Thursday that the protests had been started by radical left-wing politicians, including members of the La France Insoumise (LFI) party.
LFI rejected the claim. The party’s lawmaker Louis Boyard told BFM TV that LFI had always supported peaceful demonstrations. The government had heightened tensions by turning the issue into a political fight and insulting and pressuring students, he said.
The demonstrations have become a focus of political disputes as the government outlines plans to cut spending in its 2027 budget.
The protests have also spread beyond France. Secondary school students began demonstrating in the Belgian city of Liège on Thursday. Local media reported on Friday that all schools in the city would be closed, but a municipal representative had not confirmed the information at the time.
