France deploys 70,000 police ahead of Saturday's 31 October protests, warning of high risk

Police deployment

France will mobilise about 70,000 police officers and gendarmes for the new round of demonstrations on Saturday, 31 October. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez announced the deployment at a press conference on Thursday, two days before the rallies, and described the day as carrying a very high risk of public disorder. He said the operation would match the size of the force deployed on 24 October, and that special units from the BRI, RAID and GIGN would take part.

Nuñez also said he had ordered rest days for officers and gendarmes to be suspended where necessary, so that staff availability reaches 75%. He warned that any unrest would meet a response of absolute determination.

Calls to mobilise

Unions, students and groups linked to the Yellow Vests have called for gatherings on public roads from 20:00 on Saturday in many French cities. The government says online calls, including some from the far left and Yellow Vest websites, urge a revolution on Halloween evening. The minister expects the risk of incidents to peak on Saturday night, after the main marches have ended.

Restrictions on gatherings

Prefects will authorise public gatherings but not in city centres, favouring areas on the outskirts of towns. In Marseille and communes in the Bouches-du-Rhône department, minors are barred from moving around during gathering hours. Paris police rejected a union route from Bastille to Nation and proposed a route from Porte de Bagnolet to Porte de Charenton instead. The unions said their representatives were received but the only answer was a request to move the march. Inter-fac Île-de-France said it would examine every available legal avenue to challenge what it calls a general and disproportionate ban on a basic public freedom.

Background to the protests

The ministry said 410,000 people joined the marches on Saturday, 24 October, when 70,000 police were deployed, while unions estimate the number was at least double that. The ministry also said more than 2,700 people were arrested over the looting that shook French cities on 17 October. The movement began with students in September, and has since drawn in unions and citizens angry about the cost of living. Students are demanding more teachers and staff, and repairs to school buildings in poor condition. Education Minister Édouard Zefre (as named in the reporting) said some schools are so run down that they are not fit for teaching, and the government announced a 4 billion euro loan to regional authorities. The government has said it will cap class sizes in some classes and review the university admissions system, but students say they want measures, not half-measures.

What comes next

Unions and students have called for a national strike on 5 November, arguing that dissatisfaction over wages, living costs and public services reaches well beyond the student movement. The rallies on 31 October are the next test of how far the police operation and the restrictions on gatherings will hold.