Violent clashes erupted across France on Friday as nationwide student protests demanding improved educational conditions disrupted more than 560 high schools, prompting police to deploy tear gas and raising concerns over escalating unrest ahead of the country’s presidential election.
According to France’s Education Ministry, nearly 400 schools were closed, while classes were disrupted at 564 of the country’s approximately 3,700 high schools.
The demonstrations, which began in the Paris region in September before spreading nationwide, have seen thousands of teenage students block school entrances and confront police over inadequate educational resources, lengthy school hours, overheated classrooms and persistent teacher shortages.
Students have complained about missing textbooks and prolonged staff absences, arguing that deteriorating conditions are undermining their education.
At Turgot High School in central Paris, a 15-year-old student said his class had gone an entire year without a science teacher and lacked essential textbooks. He added that conditions in schools outside central Paris were even worse.
Friday’s demonstrations turned violent in several cities. In Brest, western France, police fired tear gas after students threw projectiles at security personnel outside Kerichen High School.
In Paris, fires damaged the entrances of two high schools, Leonard de Vinci and Gaston-Bachelard, requiring firefighters to extinguish the flames.
Police also deployed tear gas against protesters in Toulouse, while officers used batons and riot shields to control demonstrations in Aubervilliers, north of Paris.
The unrest has prompted accusations of excessive police force, with students reporting injuries caused by tear gas and aggressive crowd-control tactics. Authorities have launched internal investigations into allegations of police brutality involving three demonstrators.
Meanwhile, Interior Minister Laurent Nunez condemned an attack on a police officer in the eastern city of Belfort, where a group of youths surrounded, kicked and beat the officer until he lost consciousness.
A 17-year-old student was arrested in connection with the incident. Authorities said the officer’s injuries were not considered life-threatening.
Education Minister Edouard Geffray warned that violent groups were exploiting the student movement, reporting that at least 65 school staff members, including 40 principals, had been injured since the protests began.
He also said approximately 170 students had been wounded and more than 100 high schools had suffered severe damage.
The minister urged parents to prevent their children from attending demonstrations, citing growing concerns about student safety.
The unrest has also become a political issue ahead of France’s upcoming presidential election. Government officials have accused the left-wing France Unbowed party, led by presidential candidate Jean-Luc Melenchon, of encouraging the movement.
However, senior party official Manuel Bompard rejected the allegations, accusing the government of promoting conspiracy theories rather than addressing students’ concerns.
Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin has called on prosecutors to hold parents financially responsible for property damage caused by their children during the demonstrations.
According to Darmanin, approximately 2,000 people have been taken into police custody since the protests began, with minors accounting for 90 per cent of those detained.
As demonstrations continue across the country, French authorities face mounting pressure to address students’ demands for improved educational resources while restoring order and investigating allegations of excessive police force.
