More than 500,000 protest across France as clashes with police and widespread looting erupt

Updated at 12:50 a.m.

According to Le Monde, the French government estimated that approximately 550,000 people took part in the protests, while organizers put the figure at around 800,000. At the time, authorities reported approximately 400 arrests. In a later update cited in an earlier report, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said about 1,200 people had been arrested and 150 police officers and gendarmes injured.

Rioting and clashes with police continued late into the evening in Paris. Protesters fired pyrotechnics at police near Place Vendôme, barricades remained in the Havre-Caumartin area, and stores were looted near Place de la République.

Serious incidents were also reported in other cities.

In Limoges, the city hall was set on fire during the unrest.

In Marseille, protesters entered a municipal administration building, while a tourist office caught fire in Lyon.

In Montpellier, 63 people were arrested and 36 police officers were injured. According to the local prefecture, approximately 35,000 people took part in protests in the city.

In Nantes, 31 people were arrested. City officials said windows, computers and furniture were damaged inside a municipal administration building during the unrest.

The mayors of Paris, Marseille and Lyon called for a transparent investigation into the events and requested a meeting with the prime minister early next week.

Le Monde journalists reporting from the scene said they had never witnessed anything comparable during previous protests.

The Oct. 17 movement emerged on social media as a protest against rising fuel prices. It gained momentum with the participation of high school students, who have been blocking schools and holding demonstrations since early October.

The CGT trade union, the France Unbowed party and the New Anticapitalist Party joined the protests. Organizers drew inspiration from the Yellow Vest movement, which began on Nov. 17, 2018, in response to rising fuel prices.

The most serious unrest occurred in Paris, Lille, Lyon, Marseille, Rouen and Nice.

In Paris, looters stole merchandise from SFR and Etam stores near Place de la République and from a Franprix supermarket on Boulevard du Temple. An Apple Store was looted in Lille, while a Decathlon store was targeted in Lyon.

In Rouen, clashes near the train station prompted authorities to close all its entrances, while stores in the city center were vandalized.

In Nice, approximately 3,500 people took to the streets, including about 150 rioters dressed in black and wearing masks. On the Promenade des Anglais, they threw beach pebbles at police, attacked the city's video surveillance center and damaged a police vehicle. More than 10 people were arrested.

Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu blamed far-left extremists and criminals for the violence. He vowed that the authorities would not be intimidated and would not allow anyone to impose a political agenda through violence.