Police fire tear gas as new French demonstrations kick off

French police deployed tear gas on Saturday to disperse protesters during nationwide demonstrations over the soaring cost of living. The southeastern city of Lyon witnessed around 150 demonstrators attempting to block a road, prompting police intervention with tear gas. In Paris, the capital, shopkeepers fortified their establishments, with some removing merchandise and others boarding up windows.

The interior ministry mobilized 70,000 security personnel, anticipating a "high" threat of unrest. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez vowed to prevent any violence, noting that social media had been buzzing with calls for unrest. Meanwhile, far-right leader Marine Le Pen's National Rally party hosted a congress in Orleans, drawing thousands of protesters who chanted anti-fascist slogans.

The violence from the previous weekend, marked by clashes with police and looting of stores, left retailers with damage and stolen stock amounting to hundreds of millions of euros. Macron blamed "ultra-left" groups for the worst of the violence. This weekend's demonstrations, initiated by protesters dissatisfied with rising costs and classroom conditions, were met with boarded-up shop windows and cautious compliance from some unions.

The government sought to differentiate between legitimate protests and the disruptive acts that followed last Saturday's events. Critics, including Amnesty International, denounced the government's restrictions on protests, calling them a "slide toward authoritarian practice" that jeopardized the right to peaceful demonstration.