Up to 500 high schools across France may be partially or totally closed on Monday after weeks of clashes between riot police and students demanding better conditions and more teachers. Education Minister Édouard Geffray said lessons would be suspended in “400 to 500” schools because security conditions had not been met.
The protests, starting in Paris, have spread to Montpellier, Nantes and Marseille, with some schools burned or ransacked. Geffray noted that 24 schools had been damaged and 78 staff members were injured—a scenario “unprecedented” in France’s history.
On Friday, 1,747 people were arrested, and over 5,000 arrests have been recorded since the movement began, with about 85% of detainees being minors. Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin said 735 of France’s 3,700 schools had been affected “one way or another” by the unrest.
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu announced that the government will accelerate reforms to improve class facilities, organize school days better, and make the university admissions platform more transparent. He also pledged to speed up the review of a bill that would hold vandals financially responsible for damage.
Organizers of the protests plan to continue demonstrations on Tuesday, accusing the government of insufficient concrete measures. The situation remains tense as schools face ongoing uncertainty and students demand rapid change.
For more details, visit the BBC coverage or check the official Reuters report on the protests.
