France Unrest: 1,800 Arrested as Macron Condemns ViolenceWorld

In Limoges, the 19th-century town hall was set ablaze in a fire the local prefect said had been deliberately set; it was brought under control early on Sunday. Around 1,500 businesses were damaged nationwide, with losses estimated in the hundreds of millions of euros, according to the Retail and Trade Federation.

The interior ministry said 550,000 people took part in the demonstrations, while the CGT union put the figure at 800,000. About 500 police officers, firefighters and paramedics were hurt, the interior minister said. One person died of a heart attack during the main march in Paris, which officials said was health-related and not linked to the violence.

President Emmanuel Macron addressed the nation on Sunday evening, saying “nothing justifies” the “unbridled” violence and vowing the government would be “uncompromising” towards rioters. “Those who have destroyed must pay,” he said, pledging support for damaged businesses and “full transparency” over the security forces’ response.

Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu was to chair a crisis meeting of ministers on Monday morning to discuss insurance and aid for affected shops and the prosecution of perpetrators, his office said.

The troubles continued into a second day on Sunday, when police used tear gas against several hundred people gathered at Paris’s Place de la Republique in an unauthorised gathering, AFP journalists reported. Hundreds of those arrested in Paris remained in detention, according to lawyers.

The demonstrations followed weeks of student protests over school conditions and were called by unions and groups including former “Yellow Vests” against high inflation and public spending cuts. Analysts noted most demonstrators protested peacefully, with the violence blamed on fringe groups and opportunistic looters. US President Donald Trump weighed in on his Truth Social platform, blaming immigration for the unrest and urging France to tighten its borders.