Fires have broken out at multiple educational institutions across France as students continue nationwide protests against school funding and learning conditions. The unrest, which began with blockades last week, escalated on Thursday with blazes reported in Nantes and Rouen, prompting the interior ministry to announce 1,949 arrests and 305 injured police officers.
In western France, two high schools in Nantes were affected after a trash bin was set on fire, with the flames spreading to the entrance hall of Nelson Mandela High School. Meanwhile, in northern France, footage showed a school entrance in Rouen engulfed in flames. In Marseille, staff at Victor Hugo High School were targeted with petrol, and in the village of Auchel, a headteacher sustained an ear injury from a misfired firework at Degrugillier High School.
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu convened a crisis meeting on Thursday, after which the government described the student-led demonstrations as having devolved into “urban violence.” University students joined the protests on Thursday, occupying at least 30 campuses in cities including Paris and Rennes, citing similar grievances regarding overcrowding, staff shortages, and dilapidated buildings.
Raphael, a 17-year-old protester in Strasbourg, told news agency AFP that his school suffers from leaks, insufficient toilets, and a lack of supervisors. “The building is falling apart, the cafeteria is too small. There’s zero budget, zero resources,” he said.
The unrest has become heavily politicized months before France’s next general election. Hard-right figures, including National Rally leader Marine Le Pen, accused the radical left of organizing riots and called for stricter anti-riot laws. Le Pen asserted that the situation had moved beyond student complaints to professional rioters overseen by deputies from La France Insoumise (LFI).
Conversely, LFI leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon emphasized support for non-violent protest while arguing that blaming the left would not address the underlying issues. Bally Bagayoko, an LFI mayor and member of parliament, defended earlier comments suggesting violence could be legitimate if protesters were shot at while unprotected.
Centrist and right-wing officials condemned the damage. Marseille mayor Benoît Payan, a leftist, criticized the “unacceptable violence” but acknowledged students’ legitimate concerns about public services. Eric Ciotti, the Republican mayor of Nice, proposed that parents of students damaging school property should be held financially responsible.
Transport disruptions were also reported, with public services in Marseille and Strasbourg halted due to vandalism, threats of violence, and efforts to impede protester movement.
It is tragic that legitimate complaints about crumbling schools are being drowned out by the chaos and political maneuvering.
The violence is completely unacceptable. Setting fires and injuring officers crosses every line, regardless of political grievances.