France plans 70,000 officers for Saturday protests

France plans to deploy about 70,000 police officers and gendarmes nationwide on Saturday as demonstrations are expected after violent protests the previous weekend, Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said. Nuñez announced the security operation at a news conference, saying elite police units would support local forces. Armored vehicles and water-cannon trucks are also planned, along with helicopters, according to his account. The deployment is intended to prevent a repeat of last weekend’s unrest, when demonstrations over living costs and public services were followed by fires, looting and clashes with police. Nuñez alleged that far-left groups had circulated social-media calls for violence and looting. The reports do not independently establish that claim. He warned that people involved in violence would face legal consequences. Authorities have imposed restrictions on some demonstrations, while a limited march between Paris’s Bastille and Nation squares has been authorized. The security measures are accompanied by closures and event changes in Paris. The Culture Ministry said the Louvre, Orsay and Picasso museums, as well as the Grand Palais, would close on Saturday. Art Basel...