France is imposing partial curfews across the country, including in parts of Paris, after riots and looting amid nationwide protests over the weekend.
Curfews have been issued in Lille, Douai, Wattignies and Denain with the agreement of local mayors, sources in prime minister Sebastien Lecornu’s office told Reuters.
Nice mayor Eric Ciotti said a curfew for minors had been installed in the city overnight, while Marseille has also banned gatherings and demonstrations.
Paris police said they had issued orders barring protests in areas of the capital from 8 pm (1800 GMT) and had issued a curfew around the Place de la Republique and Les Halles from 10pm until 6 am on Tuesday.
France’s justice minister Gerald Darmanin has said that the response to violence will be “unrelenting”.
“I have given instructions that the criminal response be unrelenting,” he told TFI. “We must show extreme firmness toward the rioters who attack public buildings or businesses, and those who target law enforcement or firefighters.”
Around 800,000 people took to the streets across France to demand urgent reforms over the weekend.
Fringe groups targeted public buildings, looted luxury boutiques and supermarkets, and attacked police vehicles and officers.
Read MoreWhat sparked the fiery protests in France – and how they could spread across Europe
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More than 1,800 arrested as protesters clash with police across France over rising living costs
Key Points
- Where have curfews been issued?
- Criminal response will be 'unrelenting', says justice minister
- Macron calls for unity but warns France 'will not yield' to protesters
- Parisians blame 'troublemakers' who turned protest into riot
- Far-left leader accuses French prime minister of 'playing with fire'
- What sparked the fiery protests in France
Milan luxury shops close for fear of new unrest as government prepares to deploy troops
02:00 , Maira ButtItaly’s deputy prime minister Matteo Salvini said that the government will dispatch 500 army troops to "defend Milan" after two days of unrest that saw demonstrators clash with police, loot shops and vandalise property.
The deployment is expected to be included in a series of security measures to be approved at a cabinet meeting on Tuesday.
Shops in central Milan closed early on Monday and boarded up their windows, fearing a fresh outbreak of violence in Italy’s financial capital.
Travel warnings to France issued amid unrest
01:00 , Maira ButtGovernments across Europe and Asia have issued warnings to citizens travelling to France amid nationwide protests that have led to unrest.
Countries including China advised travellers to avoid large crowds and exercise caution citing a deterioration in security conditions.
The protests have tackled rising costs and declining public services. Foreign ministries including Italy, Germany, Poland, Czech Republic, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Denmark in Europe and China and Malaysia in Asia urged their citizens to exercise caution when visiting France.
On Monday the US also advised its citizens to avoid areas affected by protests.
Video report: Could we see France’s chaotic protests spread to the UK?
00:01 , Maira ButtItaly to dispatch 500 troops to 'defend Milan' after protests and looting
23:00 , Maira ButtItaly's government will dispatch 500 army troops to "defend Milan" after two days of unrest that saw demonstrators clash with police, loot shops and vandalise property.
The troop deployment, announced Monday by Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini, is expected to form part of a package of security measures due to go before a cabinet meeting expected Tuesday.
Luxury stores on Milan's Via Montenapoleone cleared their windows Monday and shut early, bracing for a return of the violence that hit the city over the weekend. Brands including Chanel, Tiffany and Dior took merchandise out of their displays as a precaution as police patrolled the street, where a handful of tourists looked on.
Italy dispatching 500 troops to 'defend Milan' after protests and looting
Explained: What sparked the fiery protests in France – and how they could spread across Europe
22:30 , James ReynoldsThe protests sweeping France first erupted in September in a high school in Creteil, southeast of Paris, over a lack of staff.
From there, class strikes, blockades and demonstrations spread to other Paris suburbs and then nationwide, even in smaller towns. Hundreds of schools had to close because of damage or attacks on staff.
Hundreds of thousands of protesters have since taken to the streets across the country to air frustrations over the cost of living and public services.
Here’s everything you need to know about the movement:
What sparked the fiery protests in France – and how they could spread across Europe
In pictures: Protests cause disruption across France
22:00 , Maira Butt
Fire at town hall 'affects us just as much as that of Notre-Dame', says Darmanin
21:45 , Maira ButtA fire at Limoges town hall over the weekend is just as terrible as the fire of Notre-Dame, justice minister Sebastien Lecornu said on Monday.
“The fire at Limoges town hall affects us just as much as that of Notre-Dame,” he told TFI.
“I want to assure the mayor of Limoges, Guillaume Guérin, as well as the residents that we are taking the situation very seriously.
“The national anti-terrorism prosecutor's office has positioned itself as an observer. It is carefully assessing the situation and will determine in the coming hours whether it takes charge of this case.”
A structural fire broke out at the cathedral in 2019.
Commercial courts to be convened to enable businesses to be compensated
21:30 , Maira ButtJustice minister Gerald Darmanin has said that he is convening commercial courts to enable businesses to pursue civil actions and be compensated amid looting and violence across France.
“I will convene this Wednesday all the commercial courts concerned to support all the merchant victims, enable them to file a complaint or seek civil liability in order to be compensated for the loss of the fruit of a lifetime of work,” he told TFI.
Footage and images from France over the weekend showed shops and luxury stores being broken into and looted by masked intruders.
Police custody to be extended and phone tapping and facial recognition used to identify culprits, says Darmanin
21:12 , Maira ButtFrance’s justice minister Gerald Darmanin has said that facial recognition software and phone tapping will be used to identify people involved in unrest and “violence and looting”. He added that police custody for alleged culprits would also be extended for up to 72 hours.
“Under this regime, police custody may be extended up to 72 hours, geolocation and telephone tapping will be possible, and, for the first time in this context, we will resort to facial recognition to identify those who claim responsibility for violence and looting, particularly on social networks,” he told TFI and shared a post to X after the interview.
Criminal response will be 'unrelenting', says justice minister
21:06 , Maira ButtFrance’s justice minister Gerald Darmanin has said that the criminal response to unrest amid nationwide protests will be “unrelenting”.
Speaking to TFI, he said: “I have given instructions that the criminal response be unrelenting. We must show extreme firmness toward the rioters who attack public buildings or businesses, and those who target law enforcement or firefighters.”
‘We are the shame of Europe’: France imposes curfews to stop growing riots
21:00 , Maira ButtFrench cities were plunged into lockdown on Monday night following a weekend of anti-government protests that descended into violent riots.
Marseille mayor Benoit Payan said France had become“the shame of Europe” as new measures were announced banning public gatherings in some of the country’s most iconic destinations from 10pm to 6am.
Sections of Paris, Lille and Marseille are among the cities affected, with more expected to follow after an appeal from prime minister Sebastien Lecornu Monday morning.
James C Reynolds reports:
‘We are the shame of Europe’: France imposes curfews to stop growing riots
Watch: Unfazed jogger casually runs through chaotic Paris protests
20:30 , Maira ButtWhere have curfews been issued in France?
19:32 , Maira ButtA source in French prime minister Sebastien Lecornu's office said that a curfew for minors had been set between 8pm and 6am for the next two days in Lille, Douai, Wattignies and Denain with the agreement of local mayors.
Paris police said they had issued orders barring protests in certain areas of the French capital from 8 pm (1800 GMT) and had issued a curfew around the Place de la Republique and Les Halles from 10pm. Both would remain in effect until 6 am on Tuesday morning.
In Nice, mayor Eric Ciotti said in a video posted online that he had signed an order installing a curfew for minors in central Nice overnight.
Marseille has banned gatherings and demonstrations. Meanwhile, French unions called for a new round of strikes and rallies on 5 November.
Recap: Fears of further violence as yellow vest protesters announce ‘Act II’ demonstrations
19:30 , James ReynoldsAggrieved French protesters have announced a “second act” of mass national demonstrations after as many as 800,000 people took to the streets to demand reforms this weekend.
An online movement calling itself 17octobregiletjaune on Monday announced plans for more action on Saturday, October 24, urging “Macron must go and make way for the people!”
The Gilet Jaunes, or Yellow Vests, organised protests in France between 2018 and 2020 in response to rising fuel prices, the cost of living and economic inequality.
This weekend saw widespread protests over inequality and the rising cost of living, gaining momentum from student-led protests against conditions in schools last month.
While hundreds of thousands protested peacefully across France on Saturday, violent fringe groups targeted public buildings, looted luxury boutiques and supermarkets, and attacked police vehicles and officers.
Curfew issued for some areas in Paris, says BFMTV
18:45 , Maira ButtFrench authorities have issued a curfew for Place de la Republique and the streets around Les Halles in Paris from 2000 GMT on Monday night until 0400 GMT on Tuesday, French broadcaster BFM reported on Monday.
Earlier prime minister Sebastien Lecornu had ruled out a blanket curfew on Paris.
Video report: Could we see France’s chaotic protests spread to the UK?
18:30 , Maira ButtTravel warnings to France issued amid unrest
18:00 , Maira ButtGovernments across Europe and Asia have issued warnings to citizens travelling to France amid nationwide protests that have led to unrest.
Countries including China advised travellers to avoid large crowds and exercise caution citing a deterioration in security conditions.
The protests have tackled rising costs and declining public services. Foreign ministries including Italy, Germany, Poland, Czech Republic, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Denmark in Europe and China and Malaysia in Asia urged their citizens to exercise caution when visiting France.
French authorities issue curfew in Lille
17:30 , Maira ButtA source in the French prime minister’s office told Reuters that a curfew has been issued in Lille.
Protester’s stormed Lille city hall over the weekend, with significant unrest reported.
Lille and Marseille football clubs shut their official stores amid the vandalism and looting.
The European cities facing protests from Paris to Milan as continent gripped by cost of living crisis
17:00 , James ReynoldsViolent protests have broken out across Europe amid growing frustration over the cost of living crisis, a lack of affordable housing and deteriorating school conditions.
As many as 550,000 people turned out across France on Saturday, according to authorities, to demonstrate against declining public services. Protests turned violent in Paris as shops were looted and cars set on fire in some of the city’s worst violence in years.
Young people waved Italian flags and let off flares in Milan as they rallied against rising the rising cost of living in scenes that were condemned by prime minister Giorgia Meloni.
Tens of thousands of people meanwhile marched through central Lisbon in protest of the soaring cost of living and a deepening housing crisis, echoing weeks of demonstrations in Spain that prompted prime minister Pedro Sanchez to call a snap general election.
Here’s what to know as protests sweep Europe:
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All the European cities on fire after a weekend of violent protests
Italy to approve emergency order to combat unrest
16:32 , Maira ButtMeanwhile, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has decided to approve an emergency decree to fight violent riots tomorrow, according to Sky News.
It follows serious unrest in Milan amid protests.
The government has also agreed to deploy more military personnel to the city.
Paris synagogue 'ransacked' as protests spiral out of control
15:40 , James ReynoldsA synagogue in Paris was broken into over the weekend as unrest swept the capital, according to a report.
The Ohalei Yaakov house of worship in Paris’ 19th arrondissement was raided on Saturday night, according to the Jewish Chronicle.
Books, tefillin and other objects were reportedly taken out of drawers and thrown on the floor.
It was unclear if anything had been taken.
Full story: More than 2,000 arrested as France faces up to aftermath of nationwide protests
15:00 , James ReynoldsMore than 2,000 people have been arrested and streets and buildings devastated in France after nationwide protests involving hundreds of thousands of demonstrators.
At least half a million people protested rising living costs on Saturday, according to the Interior Ministry – as violent fringe groups set fire to buildings, looted businesses and supermarkets and attacked police vehicles. One protester died after suffering a cardiac arrest during a protest in Paris, where police made a record 855 arrests.
France woke to the aftermath of the unrest on Sunday morning to find their towns pillaged and streets strewn with rubbish and burnt-out cars.
Over 2,000 arrested as France faces aftermath of nationwide protests – in pictures
First pre-trial detentions take place after Saturday's unrest
14:49 , James ReynoldsMagistrates have ordered the first pre-trial detentions for protesters involved in Saturday’s protests, a police source tells Le Parisien.
They describe an unnamed 46-year-old man who was arrested after leaving a vandalised shop in Marseille, and a 22-year-old who was arrested “after throwing stones and paving stones at riot police”, according to the source.
Recap: Marseille bans public gatherings following weekend of discontent
14:20 , James ReynoldsMarseille has banned all public gatherings between midday and 8pm following a weekend of unrest, as nationwide protests over rising living costs and declining public services spiralled.
Benoit Payan, the mayor of the port city in southern France, said recent demonstrations had resulted in “almost a total loss of control”, lamenting “scenes of absolutely unprecedented violence”.
“We are the shame of Europe this morning ... I found myself thinking about the very idea of what the Republic represents in this country - it has been brought to its knees,” he told BFM TV.
The administration issued an edict banning gatherings for most of Monday after a small number of protesters entered the city hall on Saturday. The mayor said dozens of shop windows had been smashed and that “hundreds” of vandals looted businesses in the city.
Downing Street condemns French riots
14:06 , James ReynoldsNo 10 has condemned the riots seen on the streets of France in recent days.
A spokesperson for the prime minister said the violence across the country is “unacceptable”, and said British police have “powers and resources” to protect communities should copycat riots emerge.
“The violence we're seeing on the streets of France is unacceptable,” the spokesman said. “And while the power to protest is at the heart of democracy, this can never excuse violence.”
He added: "We know people in Britain are worried about the cost of living too. The prime minister said he wants to continue taking action to provide breathing space on the cost of living.”
Asked if the prime minister has a message to those in Britain thinking of taking up similar action, he said: “Our police obviously have the powers and resources needed to protect our communities and keep the public safe.”
Protesters gather outside Le Louvre to decry public services 'falling apart'
13:40 , James ReynoldsProtesters on Monday blocked entrances to Le Louvre museum in Paris in support of the burgeoning student protest movement gripping France.
A leaflet displayed near the famous art museum read: “We are proud to announce that we are blocking the world’s largest museum.”
Devant la pyramide du Louvre, des étudiants d’écoles d’art et de culture manifestent et bloquent l’entrée du musée. «Les touristes qui attendent sont agressifs avec nous car ils ont payé leur billet», dit une des manifestantes qui distribuent des tracts en français et en anglais. pic.twitter.com/s3nqIhAA2y
— Jean-Baptiste Semerdjian (@JBSemerdjian) October 19, 2026
French stocks slide after violent protests
13:00 , James ReynoldsFrench equities led losses in Europe on Monday after one of the worst bouts of protest violence in years over the weekend, while broader sentiment was subdued ahead of a busy week of earnings.
The blue-chip CAC 40 index slid 1.02% after nationwide protests, triggered by rising prices and worsening public services, rocked the euro zone's second-largest economy as it grapples with weak growth and rising debt.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index was down 0.39% to 642.24 points by 0708 GMT after climbing more than 2% the previous week.
Banks fell the most, down 1.4%, with the bank-heavy Spanish benchmark down 0.9%.
Macron: 'How can French people do this to France?'
12:20 , James ReynoldsEmmanuel Macron condemned on Sunday what he called the "dissenters" who looted and vandalised cities in "shocking" scenes across France on the sidelines of protests over the cost of living.
"Looking at these images, we have all asked ourselves: what was going through their minds? How can French people do this to France?" the French president said in a televised address to the nation. "Nothing justifies it, nothing explains it, nothing excuses it. Tonight, we all feel anger and shame."
Macron, whose final six months in office are being shaped by mounting political, fiscal and social pressures, said he had ordered a review to determine whether there had been failings in intelligence gathering or police preparedness before protests that were later marred by looting and violence.
Macron also said he had asked the government to bring together students, teachers, lawmakers, trade union representatives and business leaders this week to formulate what he described as "concrete proposals" to address the crisis, without providing further details.
Teenager loses eye and protester loses hand as scrutiny grows over French police tactics
11:40 , Shweta SharmaTeenager loses eye and protester loses hand as scrutiny grows over French police tactics
French authorities have opened investigations into two serious injuries sustained during nationwide protests, as concerns mount over police use of riot-control weapons.
Prosecutors in Mulhouse, eastern France, said a 17-year-old girl lost an eye after being injured during the demonstrations.
A separate investigation was opened on Saturday after a young protester lost a hand in Saint-Etienne.
The circumstances surrounding both injuries remain under investigation.
The incidents have renewed scrutiny of French police tactics, particularly their use of grenades and other crowd-control weapons during demonstrations.
Meanwhile, Paris police said one person died of a heart attack during the unrest. The Paris prosecutor's office is investigating the death.
The European cities facing protests from Paris to Milan as continent gripped by cost of living crisis
11:15 , James ReynoldsViolent protests have broken out across Europe amid growing frustration over the cost of living crisis, a lack of affordable housing and deteriorating school conditions.
As many as 550,000 people turned out across France on Saturday, according to authorities, to demonstrate against declining public services. Protests turned violent in Paris as shops were looted and cars set on fire in some of the city’s worst violence in years.
Young people waved Italian flags and let off flares in Milan as they rallied against rising the rising cost of living in scenes that were condemned by prime minister Giorgia Meloni.
All the European cities on fire after a weekend of violent protests
Trump declares ‘France is burning’ and blames immigration for unrest
11:00 , Shweta SharmaUS president Donald Trump has weighed in on the violent protests in France, appearing to blame immigration for the widespread rioting and looting.
“France is burning!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform, linking the unrest to “the immigration of people from an entirely different world”.
“Close your Borders and take control, before it is too late!” he added.
French authorities and police have not linked immigrants to the violence, which erupted during nationwide demonstrations against rising living costs and poor conditions in schools.
French president Emmanuel Macron instead blamed radical far-left activists and criminals for much of the destruction.
“How can French people do this to France?” Macron asked during his televised address on Sunday
Le Pen accuses Macron government of powerlessness after France riots
10:20 , Shweta SharmaFrench far-right leader Marine Le Pen has launched a scathing attack on Emmanuel Macron's government following violent nationwide protests that left thousands arrested.
Le Pen, a presidential hopeful, described the centrist government as “exhausted, disoriented and seemingly incapable of doing anything other than commenting on its own powerlessness”.
Her remarks came as political leaders traded accusations over the unrest ahead of next spring's presidential election.
Far-left leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon also criticised prime minister Sébastien Lecornu, accusing him of “playing with fire”.
Mélenchon, who participated in Saturday's Paris march, distanced his supporters from the violence.
“My message is clear: those who share our fight have no business in looting or destruction,” he said.
