France deploys 70,000 security personnel as new protests raise riot fears

A new round of protests is set to hit France Saturday, raising fears of a repeat of last weekend’s riots.

The French government has vowed to subdue any violence, deploying 70.000 security officials, including elite anti-terror forces, Interior Minister Laurent Nunez told reporters Friday. He blamed social media calls for violence on the far left.

Shops in Paris including luxury boutiques boarded up windows and hired more security personnel, and some will remain shut. Three popular museums, the Louvre, Musee d’Orsay and the Picasso Museum will close Saturday. The scheduled football match between Paris Saint-Germain and Olympique Lyonnais in Paris was postponed.

“We will be uncompromising with hooligans, looters, and anyone who commits acts of violence — including far-left political groups,” Nunez said, while stressing that the police is “ready” to face rioters. Soldiers will help guard sensitive buildings. Helicopters, water canons and armored vehicles known as Centaurs will also be available. Some cities, including Lyon, banned protests on Saturday and extended curfews.

President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday acknowledged “planning failings and elements of surprise” last weekend, when protests drew more than half a million people and degenerated into vandalism. Rioters attacked public buildings and looted stores across the country. The French leader, who postponed a planned tour across West Africa, blamed ultra-left groups for what he called seditious acts.

Supported by a disparate movement of social media figures, students, unions and left-wing parties, Saturday’s protests are framed as an “Acte II,” or second round, of a movement calling for better public services and government help with the cost of living. Much of the anger is targeted at Macron, who six months before the end of his second term, has never been so unpopular.

Polls show the violence has benefited far-right candidate Marine Le Pen, the frontrunner for next year’s election. Adding to tensions, Le Pen is due to convene thousands of supporters in the central city of Orleans on Saturday for her National Rally party congress. Anti-Le Pen opponents are heading there to protest.

The unrest has also increased fears about public finances. While France dodged a downgrade at Moody’s Ratings late Friday, it’s struggling to reduce the budget deficit ahead of the 2027 election.

A closely watched gauge of bond risk rose to levels last seen during the euro-area debt crisis: The spread between 10-year yields in France and Germany, the region’s safe asset, reached 178 basis points on Thursday, compared with just 85 basis points at the start of September.

Private-sector economic activity also shrank this month, with the Composite Purchasing Managers’ Index compiled by S&P Global dropping to 48.4 in October from 51.1 last month. That’s below the 50 threshold separating expansion from contraction.

France isn’t the only European country dealing with a popular anger. In Italy, demonstrations by students and other youth are expected in Milan and Rome over the weekend. The government has said will deploy military forces in Milan after protests led to looting and rioting there last weekend.

Protests are also expected in Belgium while Albania is grappling with a second week of violent student-led demonstrations fueled by discontent with Prime Minister Edi Rama’s rule.