Macron keeps interior minister after protests turn violent across France

French President Emmanuel Macron has declined Interior Minister Laurent Nunez’s offer to resign after a weekend of protests, looting and clashes across France. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu called a crisis cabinet meeting on Monday to assess the unrest.

More than half a million people joined mainly peaceful demonstrations on Saturday against rising living costs and declining access to public services, including state education, the BBC reported. The protests turned violent after groups of masked people appeared. According to Al Jazeera, students demanded better conditions in schools, while other demonstrators protested high costs and faltering services.

The demonstrations began last month over education, the BBC reported, but a dialogue with students and teachers’ bodies had yet to be established. Al Jazeera said the violent weekend followed weeks of high school protests against overcrowded classrooms, teacher shortages and underinvestment.

An estimated 1,500 shops and businesses were looted and destroyed, according to the BBC. Al Jazeera reported that masked rioters attacked town halls, police stations and other government buildings in cities across the country. Riot police fired tear gas and used water cannon; officers were also seen striking people with batons, the BBC reported.

The Interior Ministry said more than 2,300 people were arrested on Saturday and almost 1,000 police officers and gendarmes were injured. The BBC reported that seven officers were seriously hurt. Protesters were injured too. Al Jazeera reported that one demonstrator lost a hand to a police crowd-control grenade.

Nunez acknowledged that police had “lost control” in some cities. “On Saturday in some major cities, you couldn’t look shopkeepers in the eye after hundreds of shops had been looted and tell them we hadn’t lost control,” he said. He estimated that 60,000 law enforcement personnel had been deployed nationwide but said their numbers were insufficient to deal with rioters and looters on the fringes of the marches.

“Given the damage that has been caused, it was only right that I should hand in my resignation,” Nunez said.

Macron asked Nunez to stay to maintain the chain of command within the police and security forces, the Élysée Palace said. The BBC reported that Macron asked him to examine how to make France’s streets safer and bring those responsible for the violence to justice. An Élysée statement also called for transparency over failures in planning and intelligence, according to Al Jazeera.

Looting continued Sunday. Paris Mayor Emmanuel Gregoire said about 30 shops in the capital were targeted that day, Al Jazeera reported. Nunez said about 350 people were arrested in Paris on Sunday and overnight. Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin said more than 2,330 people were taken into police custody nationwide over the weekend, 70% of them adults.

In a televised address Sunday, Macron called for national unity and said those responsible for the violence would be punished. The BBC reported that French media criticized the speech for lacking concrete detail. CGT union leader Sophie Binet accused Macron of failing to address students’ concerns, living costs and the quality of public services.

Yaël Braun-Pivet, president of the lower house of parliament, said she wants an inquiry into what happened. Further demonstrations have been announced for November 5.