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France announced partial curfews in Paris and several other cities on Monday after weekend demonstrations over soaring prices turned into some of the worst street violence the country has seen in years, and the prime minister declined to rule out a state of emergency.
Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu said he was “absolutely determined to restore public order.” His comments came after the interior minister said police had “lost control.”
The government faces accusations that it failed to anticipate the violence and respond to it, and officials spent Monday trying to contain public anger.
The unrest could continue, with organizers calling for a new round of protests next Saturday.
About half a million people took to the streets across France on Saturday to protest the rising cost of living.
The demonstrations capped four weeks of protests that began with students demanding better conditions at high schools.
In many cities, peaceful marches gave way to violence. Masked groups attacked police, broke into public buildings and set some on fire, looted shops, and burned cars, bicycles and scooters.
More than 2,500 people have been taken into custody since the weekend, Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin said. He said 67 have been jailed and “dozens” of criminal cases have been opened. He added that authorities would use facial recognition on social media to identify those responsible.
Nearly 1,000 members of the security forces were injured, and protesters were hurt as well. One demonstrator’s hand was blown off by a police crowd-control grenade.
At least 3,000 shops were damaged, with the cost running into hundreds of millions of euros.
France had deployed 60,000 law enforcement personnel on Saturday. President Emmanuel Macron acknowledged failures in the government’s response and, in an address to the nation on Sunday, condemned the “unbridled” violence. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez offered his resignation, but Macron refused it.
Authorities said the partial curfews, meant to protect businesses, would run from Monday evening into Tuesday morning in a number of cities.
In Paris, the curfew applies from 11:00 pm to 6:00 am to two areas that were focal points of looting: the Republic square in the centre-east of the capital and the Chatelet-les-Halles district, where many shops are concentrated.
Public gatherings in both zones were banned from 8:00 pm.
In Lyon, where a tourist office was set on fire on Saturday, a curfew covers the central zone from 9:00 pm to 6:00 am, with a gathering ban in parts of the city from 6:00 pm.
Other cities opted for narrower measures aimed at minors.
In Nice, a mayoral order sets a curfew for the city centre from 9:00 pm to 6:00 am, but it applies only to unaccompanied minors.
Lille and the northern towns of Douai, Wattignies and Denain have curfews for unaccompanied minors from 8:00 pm to 6:00 am in certain zones.
Coulaines, a village on the outskirts of Le Mans, has barred unaccompanied minors under 16 from parts of the village from 11:00 pm to 6:00 am on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday nights.
Authorities in Guadeloupe also ordered a curfew for minors in Pointe-a-Pitre and Les Abymes after protests there turned violent.
Digital minister Anne Le Henanff urged online resale platforms to remove listings for “stolen items” after the looting. She summoned representatives of companies including Vinted and eBay.
Tourists felt the effects in Paris on Monday, when the Louvre, the world’s most visited museum, closed after about a dozen protesters blocked the entrance by its glass pyramid. Barricades were erected outside.
“We don’t want to get involved. We want to stand back and get away from them,” said Pat Boland, a 73-year-old tourist from Australia.
The US embassy in Paris urged American citizens to avoid the demonstrations. Germany condemned the violence and updated its travel advice, saying further outbreaks “cannot be ruled out” in the coming days. China also warned its citizens traveling to France to take precautions, state broadcaster CCTV reported.
The unrest comes six months before France chooses a successor to Macron, who has led the country for a decade. The presidential election is scheduled for April and May. Far-right candidate Marine Le Pen is riding high in the polls.
The government has accused ultra-left groups of stoking the violence to improve the chances of far-left figure Jean-Luc Melenchon. The interior minister and intelligence services were due to meet late Monday to discuss the situation.
The European Union called the violence “unacceptable” but said the right to peaceful protest “must be protected” in France.
France is not alone in seeing protests over rising prices. Clashes broke out on the sidelines of a cost-of-living demonstration in Milan over the weekend.
Mayor Giuseppe Sala said he was “very worried because it’s a new phenomenon, which also originates from an international scenario and therefore feeds itself.”
In Belgium, police used tear gas and water cannon to disperse protesters in Brussels and Liege. In Spain, demonstrators have pitched tents in central Madrid to protest soaring housing costs, and similar encampments have appeared in Lisbon and Porto in Portugal.
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