New curfews will be imposed today, Tuesday, in areas where deemed necessary in France, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said, adding that the measures implemented on Monday in several cities “helped maintain calm throughout the night.”
France was rocked on Saturday by some of the most serious riots in recent years, just six months before the election to choose President Emmanuel Macron’s successor.
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The government, which has been accused of failing to anticipate and contain the surge in street violence, pledged to restore order, announcing several curfews in Paris and other cities on Monday.
“The targeted curfews helped keep the peace overnight,” Lecornu wrote on the X platform. “Tonight, new traffic bans will be decided upon where conditions require them. These decisions will be made on the spot by prefects, in coordination with mayors,” he added.
Meanwhile, new images and videos that came to light on Monday reveal the extent of the destruction at the historic Limoges City Hall, which went up in flames on Saturday (October 17), following an attack by a group of hooded individuals during the serious clashes that erupted after a demonstration ended.
The footage captures the extensive damage caused by the fire to the iconic 19th-century building, which was inaugurated in 1883 and is one of the city’s most important architectural landmarks.
C'est la triste image de cette journée à Limoges ; la mairie en feu après avoir été incendiée en fin d'après-midi par de très jeunes émeutiers. pic.twitter.com/Pv9gs9FyyG
Police confirmed that the night passed without any serious incidents throughout France. Several cities, including Paris, Bordeaux in southwestern France, and Nice on the French Riviera, imposed some curfews on Monday in response to the civil unrest that followed weeks of student protests over poor learning conditions in high schools.
Some restrictions, such as those in Paris, were initially in effect only overnight from Monday to Tuesday, while others, mainly in Bordeaux and Nice, were set to remain in effect for several days.
During the night, a helicopter flew over the Place de la République in Paris, one of the epicenters of the unrest, sweeping the square with a powerful spotlight to ensure compliance with the curfew.
In Lyon, despite the ban on demonstrations, about 500 people gathered on Monday evening outside the tourist office, which had been set on fire, to express their support for shop owners affected by looting, according to the organizers.
The word “LYON” had been spelled out on the ground with candles. A banner with the slogans “Anti-Rioters Lyon” and “Doucet Resign” was hung on a nearby fence, with the latter referring to the city’s Green mayor, Grégory Doucet, according to an AFP reporter.
Under pressure from these developments, the government scheduled a new round of emergency meetings for Tuesday, including talks with representatives of major social media platforms.
Finance Minister Roland Leskir pledged to take measures to support shop owners and small business owners.
On Tuesday, Patrick Martin, head of the French employers’ organization Medef, accused the government of “failed” to respond to the urban unrest, which affected at least 3,000 businesses, according to preliminary estimates.
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