Macron condemns those who 'sought to bring down the Republic' after
rioting mars nationwide protests
[October 19, 2026]
By SYLVIE CORBET and ALEXANDER TURNBULL
PARIS (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday voiced the
public’s “anger” and “shame” over rioting and looting during nationwide
protests against rising living costs and poor conditions in schools. At
least 2,400 people were arrested.
Macron echoed other government officials in blaming much of the violence
on far-left activists, accusing them of attacking police and public
buildings to foment chaos.
“Those who looted will have to pay for the damage, and those who sought
to bring down the Republic will be held accountable,” Macron said in a
televised address to the nation.
He denounced “unrestrained violence” by “insurrectionist elements from
radical far-left groups, joined by numerous criminals.”
Macron earlier held an emergency meeting with senior government
officials, a day after masked groups set fires and attacked city halls
in several cities. He said he had instructed prefects to work with
mayors to protect public buildings and businesses in the coming weeks,
including by banning protests when necessary.
Flames engulfed the 19th-century City Hall in the city of Limoges, in
central France, causing its roof to collapse and nearly destroying the
building.
New tensions erupted in Paris on Sunday
In Paris, hundreds of protesters gathered again on Sunday at the Place
de la République amid a heavy police presence. Officers used tear gas as
tensions flared sporadically in the neighborhood, with small groups of
people trying to set bicycles and trash bins on fire.
“The right to protest is a fundamental right. Deliberately and
collectively sowing disorder through violence is not,” Interior Minister
Laurent Nuñez wrote on X, citing the looting of hundreds of businesses
across the country.
Authorities estimated Saturday's marches had a turnout of about 550,000,
while organizers put it at 800,000. Demonstrators answered calls from a
labor union, student organizations and activists hoping to revive the
“yellow vest” movement, which emerged in 2018 to protest social
injustice.
Mass protests in France are often marred by violence on the fringes of
otherwise peaceful marches, leading to clashes with police. The arrest
tally reported Sunday approached the nearly 2,000 recorded nationwide
during a single day of yellow vest protests in December 2018.
Paris police said one person died of a heart attack, without providing
details. The Paris prosecutor’s office said it was investigating.
Parisians deplore shattered shops and a damaged square
Dislodged cobblestones, shattered storefronts and broken glass littered
the area around Paris’ Place de la République on Sunday. Looting and
damage were also reported in other tourist and shopping districts.
Paris police said 855 people were arrested in the capital region.
Prosecutors said 557 remained in police custody.
“I am actually stunned by the level of destruction and violence that was
expressed,” said government employee Marie Peyreigne, 57, wondering what
had led to the mayhem.
Parisians inspecting the damage photographed the partially dismantled
base of the square’s central monument, a statue of Marianne, a symbol of
France.
Jean Foissy, 74, said he had wanted to join the protest but encountered
“a wall of riot police and fires everywhere” and returned home.
“I was very scared,” he said. “I’ve been a Parisian since I was born, so
when I got here, it almost made me want to cry because I find it so bad,
it hurts me.”
Margaux Eude, 26, said she supported the protest movement but “didn’t
think it would escalate like this.”
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A woman walks her dog past a looted store the day after a
demonstration against rising living costs, joining students'
grievances, in Paris, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Emma Da
Silva)
“It’s the troublemakers who came, and it breaks my heart because it
delegitimizes the movement,” she said.
Political leaders trade blame ahead of presidential election
Political leaders traded accusations over Saturday’s violence ahead
of next spring’s presidential election.
Far-right leader and presidential hopeful Marine Le Pen criticized
Macron's centrist government as “exhausted, disoriented and
seemingly incapable of doing anything other than commenting on its
own powerlessness,” in a video posted on social media.
Far-left contender Jean-Luc Mélenchon accused Prime Minister
Sébastien Lecornu of “playing with fire,” alleging that “by banking
on degradation, you have only succeeded in uniting all youths and
workers’ unions.”
Mélenchon, who joined the Paris march Saturday, insisted that “my
message is clear: those who share our fight have no business in
looting or destruction.”
U.S. President Donald Trump posted “France is burning!” on his Truth
Social platform, apparently 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
wrote.
French authorities and police have not linked immigrants to the
rioting. Macron, speaking about troublemakers, asked: "How can
French people do this to France?”
Hundreds of businesses looted across the country
“The scale of the damage is considerable and unprecedented,” Paris
Mayor Emmanuel Grégoire wrote in an open letter. “Paris is a city of
freedoms, debate and demonstrations. It must remain so. But it must
also be a city where everyone can work and run a business safely.”
The mayors of Paris, Marseille and Lyon, the three largest cities,
requested a meeting with the prime minister in the coming days
“given the extent of the damage and the seriousness of the
situation.”
In Marseille, some protesters briefly forced their way into City
Hall's lobby and a group of people wearing hoods and masks damaged a
police station. In Lyon, a fire broke out inside a tourist office.
In Limoges, the City Hall was ravaged by flames after “radical
troublemakers” broke in while elected officials, employees, security
personnel and members of the public were inside, Haute-Vienne
prefect Maurice Barate said. “They deliberately set the building on
fire. It is an extremely serious and unspeakable act,” he said.
In eastern France, the Mulhouse prosecutor’s office said an
investigation has been opened after a 17-year-old girl was injured
during the protests and lost an eye. On Saturday, another
investigation was opened after a young protester lost a hand in
Saint-Etienne.
The injuries come as police have drawn sharp scrutiny over their use
of grenades and other riot-control weapons during recent
demonstrations.
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