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U.S. President Donald Trump has blamed immigration for unrest during protests across France, calling on the government to tighten border controls as demonstrations leave more than 2,000 people detained, hundreds of security personnel injured, and businesses damaged.
"France is burning! The immigration of people from an entirely different world, people with hatred in their hearts, has shattered that once great country," Trump wrote Sunday on his Truth Social platform. "Close your Borders and take control before it is too late!"
The protests took place Saturday as demonstrators, including members of the Yellow Vests movement and students, took to the streets over the cost of living and high fuel prices.
French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez reported that authorities had detained more than 2,000 people in connection with Saturday's demonstrations, with investigations underway to identify those responsible for the violence.
Nunez condemned attacks on security forces and public property, stressing that the right to protest did not extend to organized violence, looting or assaults on public institutions.
"Organizing a protest is a fundamental right, but spreading disorder through violent and organized action is not," he wrote on X.
He accused thousands of far-left extremists of targeting public buildings and confronting security forces from midday onward, with others later joining in looting businesses across cities, including Paris, Marseille, Lyon, Bordeaux, Rennes, Strasbourg, Grenoble, Nice and Limoges.
Over 600 police officers, gendarmes and firefighters have been injured in the violence so far, Nunez added, cautioning that the figure was not final.
"The Republic will make no concessions to those trying to impose disorder and violence," he declared, while expressing support for security personnel and firefighters who worked under difficult conditions during the demonstrations.
The unrest also inflicted heavy damage on France's retail sector, with around 1,500 shops and retailers affected over the weekend, many of them looted.
Alexandre Bompard, president of the Retail and Trade Federation, told LCI television on Sunday that the losses would amount to "several hundreds of millions of euros." He cautioned that it was too early to provide a precise estimate.
In Limoges, protesters set fire to the city's historic town hall, while numerous businesses, including luxury-brand stores, were looted in several locations.
A protester in Paris also died after becoming unwell during the demonstrations. Police sources reported that the person was taken to a first-aid center but died upon arrival. The Paris police department attributed the death to cardiac and respiratory arrest.
The demonstrations brought renewed tensions between protesters and police in Paris and other French cities, as authorities continued investigations into the violence and damage.
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