France Detains 135 in Second Weekend of Cost-of-Living Protests

French police fired tear gas at demonstrators in Lyon on Saturday, October 24, and detained 135 people nationwide as protests over living costs entered a second weekend. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said the operation was designed to prevent a repeat of the previous weekend's unrest, when about 3,000 shops across France were damaged or looted. He said "there has been no major incident" in the country.

Nuñez said he had earlier authorized the deployment of up to 70,000 officers, supported by helicopters, armored vehicles and water cannons. He listed the items seized from demonstrators: metal balls, lead pellets, fireworks, slingshots, steel balls, improvised weapons, a katana and airsoft weapons.

In Lyon, where demonstrations had been banned, roughly 150 protesters near the city center attempted to block a road, and officers dispersed them with tear gas. A 21-year-old student interviewed by Agence France-Presse said officers were "really mobile" and that "they come and disperse marches before they even form."

Authorities described the atmosphere in Paris as "calm," where hundreds assembled at the Porte d'Italie for the city's single sanctioned march. The route had been scheduled for the Bastille but was shifted at the last minute to the southeastern edge of Paris, a change union organizers said they accepted reluctantly. Union representative Murielle Guilbert called it "scandalous" that President Emmanuel Macron had barred protesters from demonstrating "where we wish to demonstrate," and said wages have not risen to the level they should.

In Orleans, thousands marched against a congress held by Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally party, where she is launching her bid to succeed Macron as president. Police counted 11,000 participants; organizers put the figure at 26,000. The crowd chanted "Macron resign. Le Pen in prison," according to AFP. About 50 groups, including unions, left-wing parties and student organizations, had called the protest, which French media reported ended peacefully early in the afternoon. The congress is scheduled to run through Sunday.

The marches have shut down parts of the capital. Major museums are closed and many businesses are boarded up. Art Basel opened Friday for one day and organizers cancelled the weekend program. The first NFL game in France, featuring the New Orleans Saints, remains set for Sunday, though some related venues were closed Saturday. A Paris Saint-Germain and Olympique Lyonnais match planned for Sunday has moved to Monday night.

The movement began last month when high school students in the southeast of Paris demonstrated over conditions, then broadened into demands for relief from rising costs. The Yellow Vests, who emerged about eight years ago to protest against Macron, said they will hold more demonstrations on Oct. 31, including rallies and a sit-in outside parliament and city halls. In Tirana, Albania, riot police used water cannons on student protesters demanding lower tuition and an end to corruption in education.

Unrest has spread across Europe. Italy sent additional soldiers to Milan after looting and clashes a week earlier, and Premier Giorgia Meloni announced tougher penalties for minors, who police said made up much of the violent crowd. Thousands of retirees marched in Madrid over pensions, and a housing protest was expected in Lisbon.