France curfews helped restore overnight calm, PM says

Targeted curfews helped bring a quiet night across France after a weekend of riots and looting, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said on Tuesday, 20 October, according to BBC News. He said further curfews for Tuesday night would depend on local needs, with decisions left to regional authorities and mayors.

Restrictions covered parts of central Paris, including Place de la République, where protesters had assembled over the weekend, and the Les Halles shopping district. Marseille, Bordeaux, Nice, Lyon, Lille and other northern towns also introduced measures limiting young people’s movements and gatherings.

In a post on X, Lecornu thanked police officers and gendarmes for implementing the restrictions. His assessment of overnight calm followed Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez’s acknowledgement that police had been overwhelmed in some cities.

Arrests, injuries and pressure on the interior minister

Officials said more than 2,500 people had been arrested since the disorder began. About 1,000 police officers were reported injured. AFP separately reported that a demonstrator lost a hand to a police crowd-control grenade.

Nuñez had faced strong opposition criticism over preparations for the unrest. He offered his resignation on Monday, but President Emmanuel Macron rejected it.

The protests began in September with students seeking improvements to school conditions. They subsequently widened to encompass other concerns, with trade unions and several protest groups adding to the demonstrations.