Police have fired tear gas at protesters in Paris and Lyon as hundreds of thousands of mostly young people marched across France over the cost of living and the state of the country’s schools.
Saturday’s rallies were the third consecutive weekend of demonstrations in France.
A coalition of youth organisations and unions representing high school and university students said nearly half a million people took part, including 200,000 in Paris. The authorities put the nationwide turnout at 320,000, including 70,000 in the capital.
Marches in the capital began peacefully, but turned violent as protesters gathered near the point where the main march was due to end on Saturday. Bins and street furniture were set alight, and plumes of smoke could be seen rising over the city.
“What we’ve been seeing … is the police firing a lot of tear gas into this crowd,” said Al Jazeera’s Natacha Butler, reporting from Paris, adding that her team “had to move out of the way because it was simply too much for us to breathe”.
Riot police warned over loudspeakers that they would fire more tear gas if protesters did not clear the street. Medics carried away people who had been injured, while some protesters raised their hands to show police they meant no harm.
Dozens of masked people dressed in black also used hammers to pry up paving stones and hurl them at police on the outskirts of Paris, the AFP news agency reported. At least one incendiary device was also thrown at security forces, who responded with tear gas and baton charges.
France’s Ministry of Interior said at least 290 people nationwide had so far been arrested.
Butler said most protesters condemned the violence, but many blamed the government for failing to listen to them.
“You really get a sense with people who have come into the street again and again over the past few weeks that they simply don’t believe the government any more. That trust has gone,” she said.
The government says it has heard the protesters. Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu has held several meetings with student unions this week and is looking at measures to ease the cost of living.
About 70,000 police and gendarmes were deployed across the country, and Interior Minister Laurent Nunez warned of a “very high risk” of disorder, especially after dark on Halloween.
The main Paris march was moved to the city’s eastern edge after a last-minute court battle, and unaccompanied minors faced a 9pm (20:00 GMT) curfew around the Champs-Elysees.
The movement began last month with high school students protesting against neglected buildings, teacher shortages and a university admissions system seen as unfair to disadvantaged students. Labour unions have since joined.
On October 17 , protests drew more than 500,000 people and turned into some of France’s worst rioting in years, according to government estimates, with shops in Paris looted.
Meanwhile, protests have taken place in other cities across Europe.
On Saturday, young people in Germany were the latest to join the fray.
Thousands rallied while police in Cologne used water cannon to break up large crowds protesting against rising costs, education cuts and plans for military conscription. Organisers said 170,000 people had registered for demonstrations in more than 30 cities.
In Barcelona, Spain, regional police prepared their highest alert level after rioting on October 24 led to about 130 arrests, mostly of minors.
Italian police were also on alert after clashes in Milan, Turin and Bologna.
