France protests turn to clashes as students and yellow vests march

Near Place de la République in Paris, police fired tear gas and stun grenades at hooded, masked protesters, some of them setting off fireworks. About 60 people were detained in the capital in the morning alone.

People arrested across France, Interior Ministry

250+ arrests

By midday, the Interior Ministry counted 140 protest actions with 32,800 people outside Paris, and said more than 250 people had been arrested nationwide.

Beyond Paris

• Marseille: a municipal police post targeted
• Rouen: a university building hit by fire
• Lyon: the tourism office set on fire, reports say

Outside Paris, protesters targeted a municipal police post in Marseille, a fire hit a university building in Rouen, and the tourism office in Lyon was set on fire, according to reports.

“There is a constitutional right to protest and to express oneself. But this right comes with the need to respect.”

— Emmanuel Macron, French president

Across France

Unions have called on public and private sector workers to strike and march on Nov 5 for wages and public services, six months before the presidential election.