Demonstrations drawing in secondary-school pupils, their families, university students, and trade unions brought large numbers of people onto streets throughout France. Officials put the number of affected lycées at 891 — representing close to one in four across the country — while a tally of street participants throughout the day was placed at upwards of 250,000.
Protest organisers affiliated with students' unions put attendance at 450,000 and reported that around 1,800 secondary schools had their entrances blocked during the day demonstrators themselves referred to as the third act of their campaign. Dozens of young demonstrators filled Place de la République in Paris, calling for increased investment in education and voicing objections to what they characterised as disproportionate policing practices.
Tear gas was deployed against crowds in Paris and Marseille, water cannon directed at gatherings in Rennes, and physical clashes between police and protesters broke out on the streets of Lyon. Tens of thousands of people spread through Marseille's streets, stopping at points along the way before adjusting their route as law enforcement moved to new positions around the city. People in face coverings pulled bins and pieces of street furniture into a line between the crowd and police.
Tear gas deployed by officers scattered the crowd in Marseille. Two young people from the city described their reasons for taking part: Alissa, a student, explained that school closures had driven them onto the streets and that the buildings themselves were in a state of disrepair, while her companion Sacha noted that leaking ceilings and generally poor conditions made it hard to study, with both expressing their intention to continue until the authorities introduced meaningful improvements.
Alain and Michèle, a couple in their seventies, took part in the demonstration in central Paris, saying their background as former teachers gave them an understanding of the difficulties facing education in France — adding that their three grandchildren were all taking part in the mobilisation. Alain noted that students had assembled peacefully outside their respective Paris high schools in the days beforehand, and yet tear gas was still deployed against them by officers.
According to a statement from Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu, the toll of those hurt since the demonstrations began stands at 215 students, 85 staff members, and 715 police officers — numbers he put forward while calling for an end to the disorder that had taken place. In an address to parliament, the prime minister turned attention toward France Unbowed (LFI), the left-wing opposition party, accusing it of working to unsettle the country's political order at a point when presidential elections are roughly seven months out.
Survey data puts Mélenchon, the La France Insoumise leader, in the runner-up position behind National Rally's Marine Le Pen, as Macron's time in office moves toward the limit set by the constitution. A gathering of ministers convened at the Élysée Palace on Tuesday evening, with Macron presiding over a review of the unfolding situation.
Geffray, in his capacity as Education Minister, told reporters he had consistently called for dialogue over school blockades throughout the unrest, and characterised certain individuals who joined the student demonstrations as having resorted to extreme violence. The measures put forward — among them an online platform for students to submit complaints and a school-based discussion session scheduled for Friday afternoon — have yet to gain any noticeable traction.
Plans for additional demonstrations on Thursday — drawing in school and university students — were outlined by the CGT, the trade union with the broadest membership base in France.
Accusations of officers using force beyond what circumstances warranted have drawn broad public attention, prompting France's IGPN police inspectorate to open inquiries into multiple incidents. A formal charge of "violence resulting in mutilation or permanent disability" has been brought against a police officer who deployed a tear-gas grenade toward a secondary school pupil in Saint-Ouen-l'Aumône, a town situated north-west of Paris. A facial injury was sustained by Eden, aged 14, while he stood among students gathered outside the Château d'Épluches lycée in a protest action. According to his lawyer, the man sustained a fractured jaw, lost four lower teeth, and had his upper teeth broken.
A 15-year-old lost a hand on Monday when a device described as an anti-encirclement grenade detonated under disputed circumstances in the vicinity of a school in the northern city of Lens. Two conflicting accounts have emerged over what happened: the version put forward by law enforcement holds that he picked up the device — described as a "sting ball" grenade — moments before it detonated, while those on the student side contend that an officer discharged it directly at him. Authorities classify the device as non-lethal, while the regional prefect indicated that officers came under pressure from a crowd of between 200 and 250 students who were hurling stones and setting off fireworks.
Complaints about overcrowded classrooms, a shortage of teaching staff, and deteriorating school facilities in Seine-Saint-Denis — a district lying north of Paris — began drawing attention in mid-September, with the discontent later spreading to other regions and reaching certain universities. According to a statement from the interior ministry issued late Tuesday, police had detained or taken into custody a cumulative 6,547 people in the period stretching back to 28 September.
