Student-led unrest has escalated across France, with high school pupils implementing protests that include setting fires to bins, erecting blockades, and halting transportation in several major cities. The demonstrations, which intensified in recent days, center on complaints regarding classroom overcrowding, insufficient teaching staff, and deteriorating school infrastructure. Several school administrators sustained injuries or faced harassment during Thursday’s actions at lycees, institutions serving students aged 15 to 18 in their final three years of secondary education.
Incidents were reported in multiple locations with varying severity. In Marseille, a situation at Victor Hugo high school involved a student attempting to set fire to a rubbish bin using petrol, with nearby teachers inadvertently affected. At the same city’s Saint-Exupery high school, hundreds of demonstrators surrounded a fire truck responding to a blaze and subsequently set the vehicle ablaze after forcing firefighters to evacuate. In Nantes, fires broke out at a school entrance during what officials characterized as a violent gathering. Strasbourg authorities halted tram service to limit protester movement after students burned barriers on tracks.
Students have articulated specific grievances regarding classroom conditions and resource allocation. One 17-year-old protester described classrooms housing 35 students in temperatures reaching 35 degrees Celsius, along with inadequate bathroom facilities and water damage in certain areas. By mid-morning Thursday, approximately 340 demonstrations were occurring outside high schools nationally, with over 160 institutions closed as a result. University students initiated their own actions, blocking access to roughly 30 campuses in Paris, Marseille, and elsewhere.
Authorities reported numerous injuries sustained through various means, including projectiles thrown by demonstrators and police riot-control devices. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez indicated that police have launched internal investigations into allegations of brutality involving three students. Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu convened an emergency meeting and directed ministers to postpone scheduled official engagements. Education Minister Edouard Geffray announced plans to meet with union representatives, parent groups, and student organizations on Friday.
The demonstrations have intersected with political discourse regarding the presidential succession later this year. Government officials have attributed protest organization to the far-left France Unbowed party, while presidential candidate Jean-Luc Melenchon asserted his party advocates nonviolent approaches and characterized the government’s response as disproportionately repressive.
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