France reports more than 1,800 arrests after cost-of-living protests turn violent

French police arrested more than 1,800 people during nationwide protests on Saturday 17 October 2026, Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said on Sunday morning. Marches against the cost of living were followed by arson, looting and clashes with police in several cities.

In a post on X, Mr Nuñez said more than 500 police officers, gendarmes and firefighters had been injured. He described the toll as provisional. Hespress, a news site, reported his post and reproduced it in an embed. According to Hespress, the arrests related to violence and looting on Saturday and into the night. On Saturday evening, Hespress had reported 1,200 arrests nationwide.

Turnout and damage

Organisers put national turnout at 800,000 people and the authorities at 550,000, according to the French broadcaster Europe 1, which reported with the AFP news agency. At least 110,000 people marched in Paris. Europe 1 reported that town halls were set on fire or ransacked, a tourist office burned down, shops were looted and cars were set alight.

In the capital, the Paris Police Prefecture said officers had detained 855 people. It called this “un chiffre record” (a record figure). The prefecture gave the number in an update at 08:00 on Sunday.

The prefecture said 13 police officers and gendarmes and two firefighters had been injured in Paris. It said it had faced violent groups “caractérisés par leur volume inhabituel (500 à plus de 1.000)”, meaning groups of unusual size, from 500 to more than 1,000 people. It was still assessing the damage to shops and the extent of the looting. It said the damage seen so far was significant.

Government response

In his post, Mr Nuñez wrote that protesting is a fundamental right but that spreading disorder violently and in a coordinated way is not. He listed attacks on the security forces and on institutions, damage to public buildings, break-ins at prefectures and town halls, and the looting of shops. He wrote that “rien ne peut le justifier” (nothing can justify it).

Mr Nuñez is due to visit Marseille on Monday. Hespress reported him as saying that abuses there had been committed by “plusieurs milliers d’individus d’ultragauche” (several thousand far-left individuals). He said they had then been joined by offenders who looted and wrecked many shops.

Europe 1 reported that an interministerial crisis cell would meet around Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu at 19:00 on Sunday. Kai Times could not establish what was on the meeting’s agenda.

Calls for resignation

Marine Tondelier, leader of the Ecologists party and a presidential candidate, said on Sunday that Mr Nuñez had “pas d’autre issue” (no other option) than to resign. According to Europe 1, she accused him of having been unable to plan an adequate security operation to prevent the violence.

The National Rally (Rassemblement national) wrote on X on Saturday that “dans une démocratie normale, Laurent Nuñez aurait déjà démissionné” (in a normal democracy, Laurent Nuñez would already have resigned).

None of the sources Kai Times consulted said how many of those arrested will be charged, or gave a final figure for the damage.

Kai Times could not open Mr Nuñez’s post on X directly. His statements are cited as Hespress published them. The Paris figures come from the prefecture’s update as reported by Europe 1 and AFP. Kai Times could not check them against a primary source.