Protests banned in parts of Paris as Macron swipes at Trump

PARIS: Police banned protests in parts of Paris on Thursday as France braced for more demonstrations, just days after student and other rallies degenerated into some of the worst street unrest in years.

The announcement on Wednesday came after President Emmanuel Macron took an apparent swipe at his US counterpart Donald Trump for exploiting the riots for political advantage in the US midterm election campaign.

The Paris ban will last from 8am to 8pm (0600 to 1800 GMT) and apply to key landmarks in the French capital, including the Elysee presidential palace, both houses of parliament, as well as tourist attractions such as the Louvre museum and the Champs-Elysees.

Other areas where rallies will be prohibited include Bastille and Republique squares, and the Chatelet-Les Halles shopping area, which was heavily targeted by looters over the weekend.

France has admitted it "lost control" amid the frenzy of street violence that erupted last weekend, when masked youths clashed with police, looted shops and vandalised public buildings.

As his government struggled to contain a crisis that has damaged France's image abroad and rattled financial markets six months before presidential elections, Macron implied that Trump, and possibly Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is also fighting an election campaign, had made "stupid comments" on the unrest for political gain.

"There are people who campaign at France's expense — leaders who are in campaign mode, whether here in the region or on the other side of the Atlantic," he told reporters in Doha.

Trump has sought to link the unrest to "migrants, jihadists, and communists" as he campaigned for his Republican Party in the US with an anti-immigration message.

He also praised French far-right leader Marine Le Pen on Tuesday. She shares his ideologies.

Le Pen late on Wednesday branded Macron's remarks as "conspiratorial" in a post on X.

"The images we saw last Saturday are not generated by artificial intelligence: they show the sad reality of what France has become after 10 years of Macronist rule," added the far-right candidate, who is leading in the polls for the 2027 presidential election.

Several analysts have dismissed claims that migrants were driving France's protests.

'New phase' upcoming

The unrest overshadowed demonstrations on Saturday, when more than half a million people marched nationwide against the cost of living. Those rallies followed four weeks of student protests that have closed many schools across France.

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Following the rioting — the worst France has seen in years — and ahead of fresh cost-of-living demonstrations planned for Saturday, Macron's government has warned it will brook no further violence.

Fresh demonstrations planned by high school pupils and university students were similarly banned in both Paris and the southeastern city of Lyon.

Following a meeting with Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu on Wednesday, the leader of France's hardline CGT union, Sophie Binet, called for a "new phase" of protests, with strikes early next month.

Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin said on Wednesday that, of the 2,500 people taken into custody during and after the protests, 174 had been jailed. Another 917 had been formally prosecuted, he added.

The upheaval in the EU's second-biggest economy has rattled financial markets already nervous about the country's growing debt pile and deficit.

The yield on France's benchmark 10-year bond passed 5 per cent on Wednesday as investors demanded a higher return amid fiscal concerns.

On Friday, ratings agency Moody's is expected to lower its rating on France's public debt.

'Quite disconcerting'

France's neighbours Italy and Belgium were also experiencing similar unrest, on a smaller scale. Italy's government has ordered 500 troops to Milan to stem street violence there.

While curfews imposed in several cities have helped calm the situation, they have disrupted some access to late-night public transport.

"It's quite disconcerting," said one Paris commuter who gave only his first name, Louis, when he found his line closed. But "if it can prevent further acts of vandalism... then yes, I think it's a good thing", he said.

The Yellow Vest movement behind last weekend's demonstrations announced on Wednesday that it planned a march on Saturday from Bastille square in Paris, followed by nationwide demonstrations on Nov 5.