Macron rules out a state of emergency

Speaking to reporters in Doha on Wednesday, 21 October, at the end of a three-day Gulf tour, Emmanuel Macron said France does not need a state of emergency to handle the aftermath of the 17 October unrest. He argued that existing law already lets prefects impose curfews or bans on gatherings, and said these local measures had restored calm since Monday, 19 October. He did not close the door entirely, saying the decision could be taken if the situation required it. Macron described the events as very serious, adding that the government's aim remained a return to calm through firmness, order measures and dialogue with legitimate demands. He also insisted that violence is never justified:

“No violence is legitimate, whether verbal, physical, against property or against people.”

Foreign comments and manipulated information

Macron blamed what he called a foreign manipulation of information for comments he described as unacceptable and even stupid, including those from foreign leaders. He did not name them, but said some leaders campaigning in their own region or across the Atlantic were gullibly repeating claims generated by artificial intelligence. Donald Trump has used the French unrest to rally voters ahead of the November midterm elections, and has said France is being burned by migrants, jihadists and Communists. Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar said on X that the chaos made it clear why Hungary advocates the strictest possible approach to migration. Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot offered to help the countries concerned understand the situation and stop false information from spreading. There is no evidence tying the incidents to immigration, and Macron rejected the claim that France had been overrun by migrants and Islamists:

“Some people have claimed that we've been overrun by hordes of migrants and Islamists, which is completely false.”

Violence, arrests and a strike call

Hundreds of thousands of people demonstrated peacefully on 17 October over the cost of living and school conditions. Other protesters set public buildings on fire, looted stores and clashed with riot police in several cities. Gérald Darmanin reported 2,500 people placed in police custody (gardes à vue) and 174 incarcerations. Intelligence services have been accused of poorly anticipating the social mobilisation, and Macron said local curfews had helped restore order. The CGT union has called a general strike starting 5 November.

Police custody (gardes à vue)2,500

Incarcerations174

Police custody (gardes à vue)

2500

Incarcerations

174

Data from the article text

Thursday review and the Gulf trip

Macron said he kept his planned Gulf tour despite criticism, citing France's image in the region and its nationals. He said the results of the trip would serve the country in the weeks and months ahead, including a secured supply of diesel and the equivalent of 2 TWh per month of liquefied natural gas from Qatar over the winter period. On Thursday morning, 22 October, he plans a meeting with all intelligence services, the prime minister and the relevant ministers to obtain a detailed account of what happened on 17 October. He said he wanted transparency about the violence at the protests.