French authorities have expressed relief after recent protests over rising living costs resulted in less violence than previous weekends PARIS -- French authorities expressed relief Sunday after mass protests over rising living costs resulted in less violence than previous weekends. But police expect new demonstrations as high schools at the heart of the movement reopen Monday after their autumn break. Germany faced its own challenges after nationwide protests Saturday ended with rioters attacking police and looting stores in some cities.
Around Europe, hundreds of thousands joined overwhelmingly peaceful marches Saturday inspired by young people, despite scattered unrest. In Paris, rioters targeted police with Molotov cocktails at the end of Saturday’s march on the city’s eastern edge, injuring three officers and setting a car ablaze, police said. Across town, masked groups hurled fireworks at officers at a viewpoint across from the Eiffel Tower, and police charged repeatedly, sending panicked tourists fleeing the area.
Overall, however, the violence was less severe than on Oct. 17, when a city hall was torched and more than 2,000 stores were looted in hours of violence that authorities seemed unprepared to control, or during follow-up protests Oct. 24. Police had arrested 779 people as of Saturday night, compared with 2,628 on Oct. 17 and 1,314 last weekend. Paris and Marseille police said a handful of shops were targeted but no major damage was reported.
A national police official said Sunday authorities had prepared for a larger turnout of both of peaceful marchers and troublemakers. About 70,000 police were deployed around the country. Police are preparing for more tensions as schools reopen Monday and as student groups and labor unions call for new nationwide protests on Tuesday and Thursday, the official told The .
The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to be publicly named according to police policy. More than 100,000 mostly young people protested peacefully across Germany on Saturday, demanding that the government invest more money in education, housing, climate protection and make daily life more affordable. In some cities the protests turned violent at night.
Following a demonstration in Frankfurt, rioters attacked police downtown and looted stores. Several protesters and officers were injured and 30 people were detained. After police cordoned off an area in the city center, the situation calmed down by early Sunday morning.
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