France school protests resume as injuries and arrests rise

Protests and blockades at schools across France have resumed, despite the prime minister's call for ministers to draw up an action plan in response to the unrest. Dozens of people have been injured, including students, teachers and police officers, as high school students continue to press demands for more education funding and better conditions. The demonstrations have also spread beyond schools, with university students and more trade unions joining the nationwide movement.

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The Interior Ministry says at least 6,600 arrests have been made so far, mostly of minors, while authorities say 375 schools were fully or partially closed on Thursday. Officials also said two dozen schools had been burned or destroyed. The wave of protests began at a high school in a deprived area of Paris on 21 September and has since spread across the country, with tens of thousands of students taking part and raising concerns about school buildings, classroom hours and wider conditions in education.

The unrest has put pressure on the outgoing government of Emmanuel Macron ahead of April elections and has become a politically sensitive issue for the authorities. Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu condemned the violence in a television address on Wednesday and criticised political leaders who, he said, were using the anger for electoral battles. He has ordered ministers to provide an action plan by the end of the month, but protesters remain unconvinced and a large rally is expected in Paris on Thursday.

The protests matter because they combine a domestic education dispute with wider questions about policing, public order and the government's ability to respond to youth-led unrest. Rights groups have accused security officials of using disproportionate force, while authorities have accused some students of violent acts. Several demonstrators have been injured, including one teenager who lost a hand and another whose jaw was shattered by an exploding stun grenade, and police officers and teachers have also been hurt.

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The movement has grown from a local school protest into a nationwide challenge involving students, teachers, unions and police. It has also drawn in university students, who have joined blockades in solidarity with high school pupils. The scale of the arrests and school closures suggests the authorities are facing a sustained disruption rather than isolated incidents, even as the government promises a response.

What remains unclear is whether the promised action plan will satisfy protesters or reduce the level of disruption in the coming days. It is also not yet clear whether the expected rally in Paris will lead to further arrests or injuries, or whether schools in other parts of the country will remain closed. The next developments will show whether the protests continue to widen or whether officials can contain them through negotiations and policing.

France has summoned Iran's ambassador after accusing Tehran of running a disinformation campaign about student protests that have spread across the country. The French foreign ministry said the ambassador was called in on Wednesday over what it described as misleading content disseminated online by official Iranian accounts. The move came one day after Iran summoned the French ambassador over France's handling of the demonstrations.

According to the French foreign ministry spokesperson, Pascal Confavreux, the material shared by Iranian official accounts was "absolutely unacceptable". He said the online messaging targeted France's student protest movement and added that such "undignified provocations must cease". Tehran, for its part, criticised what it called France's violent treatment of protesters and alleged extensive human rights violations during the demonstrations.

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The diplomatic exchange comes as the protests in France have intensified and clashes have taken place between demonstrators and security forces. Rights groups, including Amnesty International, have accused French authorities of using disproportionate force, citing the use of tear gas, blast balls and batons to control crowds. The unrest has already prompted wider scrutiny of policing methods and has become a politically sensitive issue for the French government.

The row matters because it has moved a domestic protest movement into a direct state-to-state dispute. France and Iran have both used diplomatic channels to challenge each other's conduct, turning the protests into a broader argument over public order, human rights and online influence. The exchange also comes against the backdrop of long-running criticism of Iran's own crackdown on protesters in recent years, including after the death of Mahsa Amini in 2023.

The current protests in France began over school conditions, including dilapidated infrastructure, teacher shortages, overloaded schedules and a lack of funding. They have since spread more widely, with repeated clashes and accusations that police have used excessive force. The French government has already faced pressure over the scale of disruption and the number of injuries reported during the unrest.

What remains unclear is whether the diplomatic summonses will lead to any further formal steps by either side. It is also not yet clear whether the protests in France will continue at the same intensity or whether the latest exchange will affect how the authorities respond. The next developments will show whether the dispute stays focused on the demonstrations or broadens into a wider diplomatic confrontation.

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