France’s government estimated that 320,000 people joined demonstrations across France on Saturday, 31 October 2026, including about 70,000 in the main Paris march, in a third consecutive weekend of youth-led protests over the cost of living and education.
Turnout was lower than on the previous two weekends: the government counted more than 500,000 on 17 October and 410,000 on 24 October, while organisers put the numbers considerably higher.
Around 70,000 police officers and gendarmes were deployed. The Paris march was moved outside the city centre to reduce the risk of unrest around government buildings and tourist sites after a last-minute court battle. It began near Porte de Bagnolet, with students leading, and was joyful for hours, with music and some marchers trick-or-treating.
Later, clashes broke out near Porte de Charenton, where the march ended: protesters hurled glass bottles and fireworks at police, and officers responded with stun grenades and tear gas. Many peaceful marchers turned back coughing, their eyes streaming.
Authorities reported around 300 arrests nationwide by Saturday, compared with 800 at the same point the previous weekend. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez had warned of a very high risk of disorder, particularly after dark on Halloween.
The movement began last month with high school students protesting deteriorating school buildings, teacher shortages and a university admissions system they consider unfair; labour unions and other groups later joined, bringing wider grievances against President Emmanuel Macron’s government.
In Germany, the youth initiative Gen Z regelt (Gen Z’s got this) organised rallies in more than 30 cities, calling for better education and healthcare, climate protection and a more affordable life, and opposing a possible return of compulsory military service. Organisers said tens of thousands took part, though official attendance figures were not immediately available. In Cologne, police brought a march to an early end after demonstrators used pyrotechnics, threw stones and covered their faces despite a ban, and officers deployed water cannons. In Hamburg, some protesters fired pyrotechnics at police and set barricades on fire, and authorities responded with water cannons and tear gas.
In Lisbon, thousands of people, including families with young children, gathered peacefully in the city centre to protest against the housing crisis, carrying placards reading Houses or Fire and We are not Afraid, some holding small cardboard houses and some wearing Halloween costumes.
In The Hague, police maintained a heavy presence around the central shopping district amid online calls for demonstrations and fears of rioting; there were few visible signs of protests and no major disturbances by mid-afternoon, though some shops had boarded up as a precaution.
Authorities also restricted access to Place de la Republique and Les Halles between 11 pm and 6 am on Saturday and Sunday, and a 9 pm curfew applied to unaccompanied minors around the Champs-Elysees, after a Paris court suspended an earlier version of the restriction.
Source: Firstpost (with inputs from agencies).
The featured image is an illustrative stock photo only and is not a photograph of today’s protests.
