French Students Continue Protests as Police Use Tear Gas

Students and supporters demonstrated across France on Thursday, October 8, as protests over school conditions and education funding continued, with police using tear gas and water cannons during clashes in Paris. The Interior Ministry reported 71,500 people at marches nationwide, including 24,500 in Paris, and separately counted 55,000 young people protesting outside schools. At Place de la Bastille, a focal point of the Paris demonstrations, police deployed tear gas and a water cannon as crowds gathered. Earlier, students barricaded the Hélène Boucher high school in northeastern Paris with rubbish bins before police moved in with tear gas, according to reports from the scene. Some protesters hurled projectiles at riot police. The Education Ministry said 375 schools were fully or partially closed on Thursday. It also reported that 224 schools were closed in the morning and 157 by lunchtime, while 96 were operating. Those time-specific figures accompanied demonstrations that took place in cities across the country.