Massive student-led protests swept across France on Tuesday as high school pupils, joined by teachers, parents and unions, demanded education reforms and better school conditions. Police clashed with demonstrators in Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Strasbourg and Rennes, deploying tear gas and water cannons to disperse violent groups on the fringes of marches that drew more than 250,000 people nationwide, according to the Interior Ministry. Organizers claimed 450,000 participated.
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu described the demonstrations as the most violent in decades, with at least 215 students and 85 school staff injured alongside 715 police officers. A 15-year-old lost a hand in Lens on Monday after an explosion involving a police grenade, while a 16-year-old in Tours lost the use of an eye from what prosecutors said was likely a projectile fired by riot police. Authorities reported 488 arrests on Tuesday alone.
Lecornu suspended high school classes for the rest of the week, citing the need to address concerns through "internal democracy" within schools. The High School Students Union said nearly 2,000 schools were blockaded or closed, with protesters carrying signs reading "The state has killed national education" and "Survive or study." Education Minister Philippe Baptiste is scheduled to meet student representatives on Wednesday amid threats of university blockades if demands are not met.
The protests, which began in mid-September over staff shortages at a Paris-area lycée, have since spread nationwide, with students calling for improved facilities, equal conditions for schools in less affluent areas, and changes to the education system. The government has faced criticism over its muscular police response, with Amnesty International condemning the "disproportionate use of force" against minors. Lecornu defended the crackdown, stating that "burning down a high school does not improve the state of high school buildings."
