France riots: about 1,800 arrested as the country counts the damage

Arrests across France

1,800 arrests

Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said about 1,800 people were arrested on Saturday, nearly half of them in Paris. More than 500 police officers, gendarmes and firefighters were injured.

Authorities counted 550,000 protesters nationwide and unions 800,000, most of them marching peacefully against the cost of living and run-down schools.

In Limoges, a fire the regional prefect said was set deliberately gutted the 143-year-old town hall. About 1,500 shops were damaged across France, the retail federation said.

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President Emmanuel Macron was to address the nation on television on Sunday evening, six months before the election to replace him.