France Carries Out Nationwide Security Operation as Protests Continue

Overview

• The state mobilized about 70,000 security personnel for a nationwide operation on Saturday, including elite police units RAID and GIGN, mounted police, armored vehicles, helicopters, drones and Sentinelle military patrols.
• Authorities reported roughly 135 arrests during the day after preventive searches uncovered items that could be used as weapons, following an earlier wave that left about 2,700 people detained since October 17.
• Union-authorized marches proceeded in several cities while police used tear gas and dispersal tactics to break up nonauthorized gatherings in places such as Lyon, Lille and Pau.
• Major cultural institutions and many shops closed or boarded up for the weekend after about 3,000 businesses were damaged or looted during last week’s disturbances, and some local protest bans or route changes are facing court challenges.
• What began as high-school and university actions over staffing and school conditions has broadened into a national cost-of-living and public-services movement that is reshaping political debate and raising questions about protest rights and public order ahead of the presidential campaign.