France prepares for day of protest a week after nationwide riots

France is bracing for a major day of nationwide protests on Saturday, a week after some of the worst unrest the country has seen in decades, the BBC reports.

More than 70,000 police officers will be deployed across the country under sweeping restrictions on demonstrations, the interior ministry has said. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez warned: “We will not let anything go unchallenged,” adding that authorities would be “uncompromising with the vandals, with the looters, and all those who commit acts of violence.”

Hundreds of people have already been jailed for vandalism, arson and looting after last week’s rioting, in which police were vastly outnumbered by protesters. Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin said 232 people had been imprisoned for their roles in the unrest and has ordered prosecutors to seek punitive measures against those convicted of looting or attacking police.

President Emmanuel Macron, who decreed earlier this week that only union-organised demonstrations would be authorised this weekend, met representatives of high-school student groups on Friday ahead of the protests. A website associated with the movement has listed more than 500 planned demonstrations and some 200 other actions across the country.

In Paris, a march organised by the student trade union has been authorised. The Louvre, Orsay and Picasso museums will all be closed on Saturday. Some cities have lived under partial curfews this week, though the picture is inconsistent, with some mayors imposing broad bans while others have agreed to allow demonstrations.

The political fallout is growing: La France Insoumise leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon has called on his supporters to join Saturday’s protests. Meanwhile, a two-day National Rally conference in Orléans – about 120km south of Paris – could draw left-wing counter-demonstrators, and the city’s mayor has warned that the numbers expected are “unprecedented”. Opinion polls suggest Marine Le Pen could have her strongest chance yet of becoming president when Macron leaves office next spring.