France braces for protests as Macron warns against attempts to cause chaos
French President Emmanuel Macron has said people who plan to cause chaos during protests over the high cost of living will not be allowed to do so. He made the remarks in Doha, where he met Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, and said he would meet French intelligence services before planned protests on Saturday. His comments come as France prepares for another weekend of demonstrations after unrest earlier this month.
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Macron said there had not been any visible foreign interference in the events that took place, but warned that there had been foreign manipulation of information in the aftermath. He also criticised what he called unacceptable and even stupid comments by foreign leaders, saying they were trying to use the unrest for their own political purposes. The French president appeared to be referring to claims made by United States President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, neither of whom provided evidence for their assertions.
The unrest has already led to significant disruption. More than half a million people gathered across France on Saturday to demand better conditions in schools and to denounce high living costs. At least 2,500 people were arrested after riots broke out in some areas, and shops were looted.
Macron said he would adopt all necessary measures to restore calm, security and order, while Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu has pledged to increase security at future protests. The latest comments underline the political sensitivity of the unrest in France, where economic pressure and public anger have fed large-scale mobilisation. The government is now balancing the right to protest with concerns about disorder, looting and the spread of misleading information online.
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Claims about foreign manipulation have added a diplomatic dimension to what began as a domestic protest movement. There are also signs that the security response is being stepped up. Macron said a state of emergency was not currently necessary, but Lecornu said there would be a massive deployment of police, backed by the military.
On Wednesday, France's Yellow Vest movement filed plans for a large protest in Paris this weekend, following a second consecutive night of curfews that passed without major incidents. That suggests authorities are preparing for further demonstrations even as the immediate situation remains fluid. What remains unclear is whether the planned protests will lead to renewed unrest on the same scale as the earlier violence.
It is also not yet clear whether the claims of foreign manipulation will be backed by evidence or remain political accusations. The next key test will be the authorities' ability to maintain order while allowing demonstrations to proceed.
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