Youth-Led Protests Fill Streets in France and Germany as Violence Eases in France but Flares in German Cities
French officials said violence was less severe than in prior weekends as hundreds of thousands marched for a third straight weekend, while protests in Germany turned violent at night in Frankfurt, Cologne and Berlin.
Hundreds of thousands of people marched across France on Saturday in a third straight weekend of youth-led protests over the cost of living, and French officials said Sunday the violence was less severe than in prior weekends even as scattered clashes broke out in Paris and other cities.
In Paris, police said rioters threw Molotov cocktails at officers at the end of Saturday’s march on the city’s eastern edge, injuring three officers and setting a car on fire. Across town, masked groups threw fireworks at officers near a viewpoint across from the Eiffel Tower, and police charged repeatedly as tourists fled the area, according to the Associated Press.
Fewer arrests than in prior weekends
Police arrested 779 people as of Saturday night, compared with 2,628 on October 17 and 1,314 last weekend, according to the report. About 70,000 police were deployed across France. Police in Paris and Marseille said a handful of shops were targeted, with no major damage reported.
A national police official told the Associated Press that police were preparing for more tensions as schools reopen Monday after their autumn break, and as student groups and unions call for new nationwide protests on Tuesday and Thursday.
Protests spread to Germany and Portugal
In Germany, more than 100,000 mostly young people protested peacefully on Saturday, calling for more money for education and housing, action on climate protection, and lower daily costs. The youth initiative behind the German marches, called Gen Z regelt, said on Instagram it distanced itself from any form of violence by people who were not part of the demonstrations.
In some German cities the protests turned violent at night. After a demonstration in Frankfurt, rioters attacked police in the city center and looted stores. Several protesters and officers were injured and 30 people were detained, and the area calmed by early Sunday after police cordoned it off.
Boris Rhein, the governor of Hesse, where Frankfurt is located, said he was shocked by the violent excesses in Frankfurt and that they will not go unpunished. German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt accused violent left-wing groups and troublemakers from the immigrant community of hijacking the peaceful demonstrations, and told the daily paper Bild on Sunday that the rioters and looters will be identified and held accountable.
Violence also broke out in Cologne, where police used water cannons to disperse the crowd, and in Berlin, where protesters attacked police with bottles and pyrotechnics. In Portugal, riot police removed protesters by force from a square in Lisbon overnight after thousands marched during the day for more affordable housing and a few hundred camped out in Rossio square. A few people were detained.
Reporting based on coverage by the Associated Press.
