French authorities arrested at least 164 people on Monday during widespread high school blockades and protests over deteriorating educational conditions and budget cuts.
The demonstrations began last week in the Île-de-France region around Paris and spread to major cities including Marseille, Lille, Grenoble, Lyon, and areas near the southern border.
The unrest affected 180 schools and unfolded ahead of a planned nationwide public sector strike.
Students Demand Resources as Injuries Reported
High school students are demanding more resources, citing overcrowded classrooms, severe teacher shortages, high cafeteria prices, and poor facility maintenance.
French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez reported injuries to 12 security force members, eight school staff including three principals, and roughly a dozen students.
He said the demonstrations had transformed from traditional activism into urban violence involving masked individuals equipped with projectiles and fireworks targeting police.
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said nothing justifies endangering students, staff, or police officers.
He acknowledged that the difficulties faced by high schools must be heard and addressed, but warned the escalation was irresponsible and that perpetrators of violence would be prosecuted.
He also accused the far-left France Unbowed party of encouraging the spread of the blockades.
The Union Syndicale Lycéenne said the lack of teachers and staff, dilapidated schools, overcrowded schedules and classes, and stress caused by Parcoursup were not inevitable but the result of 10 years of Macron's policies and insufficient resources in the national education system.
The primary student union defended the blockades as a legitimate response to government policy and urged students to intensify school blockades on Tuesday in coordination with broader civil service walkouts.
Support also came from labor organizations like the General Confederation of Workers, which said student demands reflected genuine study conditions rather than political instigation.
France Unbowed leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon accused the administration of ordering a violent crackdown on harmless students, asserting that government repression was driving the escalation.
Authorities confirmed that multiple judicial investigations have been opened following incidents involving crowd-control weapons and localized arson.
