Hundreds of thousands demonstrate in the streets of France.. What happened on Saturday of protests?

More than 400,000 people took to the streets in France, on Saturday, to participate in protests that were mostly peaceful, while the authorities arrested about a thousand people, at a time when several European countries are witnessing anti-government demonstrations. The French Interior Ministry said that about 110,000 out of approximately 410,000 protesters were in Paris, a number roughly the same as the number of people who demonstrated in the capital last weekend.

Meanwhile, the Student Union Organization (L’Union Étudiante) said that the numbers of protesters today were much larger, but it did not explain the method it used to estimate these numbers. The French authorities reported that about 1,000 people were detained during demonstrations - which were largely peaceful - across France, which witnessed the deployment of about 70,000 police throughout the country, as part of a large-scale security operation.

This comes in light of a state of discontent in Europe, where several countries are also witnessing demonstrations. In Albania, police used water cannons during clashes with protesters, while skirmishes took place in Italy as hundreds of people gathered in the cities of Naples, Rome, and Milan. Young people are protesting against issues ranging from lack of funding for education to housing costs.

In France, Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said that nearly 1,000 people were detained during the demonstrations that the country witnessed on Saturday, adding that this number comes compared to 385 cases of detention recorded during last week’s protests. “Paris witnessed a large demonstration that took place peacefully, as is the case with most protest marches across the country,” Nunez told reporters.

He added: "Protesters were prevented from organizing unauthorized marches or heading towards city centers. In some cities, damage or looting of stores occurred, but they were on a very limited scale, and in much smaller numbers than what we witnessed during last week's protests."

He stated that there were no "deliberate attacks" on public buildings, such as municipal headquarters and police stations, similar to what happened last Saturday. However, he noted that security forces faced an “extremely high level of violence,” as they were “subjected to constant projectile hurling and the launching of powerful fireworks.”

Nunez explained that Paris witnessed the presence of “about 500 rioters who were fully intent on attacking the internal security forces or carrying out looting,” and added that the security forces would remain deployed until late, to prevent any looting. In regional protests, numbering about 280, outside Paris on Saturday evening, clashes and violence occurred, according to the Ministry of the Interior.

Protesters in Marseille, the second largest city in France, fired powerful fireworks at the police amid skirmishes in the streets. There were also reports of looting in various parts of the city, including a jewelry store whose facades were smashed, and a large store that was looted, according to BFM TV.

Marseille Mayor, Benoit Payen, acknowledged that there had been "minor disturbances" caused by protesters on Saturday evening, while praising the efforts of the police and firefighters. He said: “The city center is largely secured, as are the suburbs,” stressing the readiness of the security forces.

Bayan added: "We have deployed forces that rise to the challenge; seven units of mobile security forces, about a hundred gendarmes, a Santor armored vehicle, a vehicle equipped with a water cannon, and a surveillance plane were mobilized, in addition to about thirty municipal police units." In the city of Nice, where the authorities banned protests over the weekend, and although a small number of people came out, Mayor Eric Ciotti expressed his gratitude to the security forces "who today, once again, were subjected to shocking violence."

While in the city of Lille, only a small amount of damage was recorded during the protests, the city's socialist mayor, Arnaud Deland, stated that large crowds gathered in the city "to express their deep frustration" and called on the French government to respond.