Hundreds arrested as French student protests over school overcrowding turn violent

A wave of school protests concerning overcrowded classes and teacher shortages has spread across France, resulting in at least 450 arrests, mainly of minors, and 76 injured people according to officials. The demonstrations started in Paris last week before extending to cities including Dijon, Lyon, Strasbourg, Lille and Marseille, where teenagers blockaded their schools for several days.

Education Minister Édouard Geffray recognised that some student demands were legitimate but expressed deep concern about the violence. He cited a young man who suffered permanent injury to his hand from a mortar firework, and reported that dozens of pupils and staff had been hurt since the protests began. At least ten teachers and several students were injured on Tuesday alone, with one teacher reportedly beaten. Firefighters were called to Strasbourg after bins were set alight outside a school, and police deployed tear gas to disperse students in Dijon.

The secondary school students' union USL stated that as many as 400 of France's 3,700 secondary schools had been blockaded and called for further action, including at universities. Minister Geffray criticised the radical-left party France Unbowed for stirring up unrest, following controversy over comments from the LFI mayor of a northern Paris suburb suggesting that violence could be justified in certain circumstances when students encounter police. Students at affected schools told France Inter radio that whenever they attempt to express themselves, they face tear gas, and authorities do not seek to understand their concerns.