France will deploy a large number of police officers and a portion of the army to the streets on Saturday, 24 October, due to new protests. This was announced by French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu and Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez following major riots that broke out in numerous French cities last weekend.
Speaking before the National Assembly, Lecornu stated that the deployment of police forces on Saturday would be massive. He acknowledged that the police had not been sufficiently mobile during the 17 October protests and that their deployment did not allow for an effective response to violence and looting. He judged the police deployment on that day to be too static and insufficiently mobile. The Interior Minister has already issued instructions to the prefectures.
Nuñez announced a change in police strategy. The number of deployed forces will be increased, as will their mobility and speed of reaction towards groups that are systematically attempting to stretch police forces across multiple locations. The authorities will also deploy members of the military Operation Sentinelle. Soldiers will not take over public order maintenance duties at protests, but will primarily perform static security tasks to allow the police and gendarmerie to focus on maintaining order.
The goal is to re-establish order as quickly as possible after the violence and property destruction last weekend. During the major protests on 17 October, the police had difficulty containing violent groups, and clashes, fires and looting were recorded in the centres of several cities. The authorities are trying to show that they have learned from the security failures that left parts of Paris, Marseille and Lyon insufficiently protected. Nuñez had previously offered his resignation due to failures in police handling, but President Emmanuel Macron rejected it.
National Assembly President Yaël Braun-Pivet proposed the establishment of a parliamentary inquiry committee due to the violence, which should analyse the organisation of violent groups, police strategy and possible failures in preparing the security response. Political groups in the National Assembly agreed today to launch a parliamentary investigation into the violence during last weekend. The investigation should also cover police conduct, specifically how security forces were deployed during the protests.
New protests are scheduled for Saturday, 24 October. They have been called by student organisations demanding better education conditions, and members of the yellow vest movement have also announced a new mobilisation. Following last weekend, around 2,400 people were arrested in France, and at least 3,000 shops were damaged or looted. French authorities have meanwhile introduced curfews in several cities to prevent new riots. Prime Minister Lecornu said that these restrictions helped calm the situation during the past night, and announced that similar measures could be introduced elsewhere if necessary.
