French student protests close 400 high schools after clashes leave 65 staff and 300 police injured
French authorities shut down roughly 400 high schools on 2 October following nationwide unrest that led to nearly 2,000 detentions and prompted emergency cabinet talks in Paris.
Nationwide school disruptions and property damage
Protests over education conditions and spending measures spread across all French departments, leading authorities to close approximately 400 of the country's 3,700 high schools. On 1 October, security services recorded 900 distinct protest actions, 1,027 mobilised institutions, and 222 physical blockades, with about 30 university campuses also joining the movement. More than 100 school buildings sustained physical damage. In Paris, fires damaged the entrances of Lycée Léonard de Vinci and Lycée Roger Verlomme in the fifteenth arrondissement, along with a vocational institute in the thirteenth arrondissement. Outside individuals ransacked staff housing at a high school in Lyon, while an arson fire charred a school facade in Nantes. At Lycée Victor Hugo in Marseille, the principal, vice-principal, secretary, and head of staff were assaulted and doused with gasoline during demonstrations.
- Institutions mobilised
- 1027
- Protest actions recorded
- 900
- Schools closed by authorities
- 400
- Recorded school blockades
- 222
Casualties, detentions, and parental liability
The confrontations resulted in injuries to over 300 police officers and gendarmes, 170 students, and 65 public education employees. The Paris prosecutor opened an investigation into group violence against a public official after a police officer was assaulted outside a school. Law enforcement made 1,949 detentions on 1 October, bringing the total since the start of the week to nearly 2,000. Minors accounted for 90% of those detained, and one third were held for violent acts against persons. In response to the scale of destruction, Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin instructed state prosecutors to enforce civil liability rules against parents to require them to pay for repairs.
Among the 65 public education employees injured, there are 40 principals.
- Police and gendarmes
- 300 people
- Students
- 170 people
- Education staff
- 65 people
Crisis meetings and political dispute
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu convened an interministerial crisis meeting in Paris, prompting the cancellation of all ministerial travel. Prefectures prohibited demonstrations outside closed high schools, including 13 institutions in Paris, while police deployed to secure sites like Lycée Jean Macé in Rennes. The executive and right-wing figures accused La France Insoumise of orchestrating the unrest alongside radical left groups. Party coordinator Manuel Bompard rejected the allegations and criticised the government for dismissing genuine student grievances.
I invite the government not to fall into conspiracy theories and the infantilisation of high school students.
Education Minister Édouard Geffray scheduled negotiations on 2 October with student groups, parents' associations, and education trade unions.
The first thing is to protect our students.
Fiscal austerity and initial concessions
The student mobilisations stem from demands for increased education resources, decent classrooms, and the replacement of absent teachers amidst national budget cuts. Prime Minister Lecornu presented the draft 2027 state budget to manage national debt standing at 119% of gross domestic product, proposing €43 billion in additional savings to reduce the fiscal deficit to 5%. Market pressures pushed French ten-year bond yields to 4.92%, expanding the spread over German bunds to 131 basis points. To reduce tension ahead of union talks, the government withdrew budget proposals that would have imposed registration fees on higher technical courses and preparatory classes for selective institutes.
