Nuñez Orders 70,000 Officers as Paris Shuts Museums for Saturday March

France is preparing for a new wave of demonstrations on Saturday with a massive security deployment.

Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez stated that up to 70,000 police officers will be deployed across the country. The force will be supported by helicopters, armored vehicles, and water cannons. In central Paris, a small number of gendarmes were already positioned beneath the Arc de Triomphe and on nearby avenues. Police altered the planned route in the capital on Friday. The march is now restricted to the city's southeastern edge, specifically the area between Porte d'Italie and Porte de Vincennes. This change replaces the previously planned path from Bastille to Nation. The adjustment comes after last week's protests attracted more than half a million participants.

The demonstrations began last month over staff shortages at a high school southeast of Paris but have since expanded to include broader economic grievances. Students are demanding more teachers, improved school infrastructure, and additional university spots. Labor unions are calling for higher wages and pension reforms to help households manage rising living costs. Student groups have released a joint 10-point plan that requests 250,000 new higher education places and the end of the Parcoursup admissions selection system. The plan also includes an increase of 200 euros, or about 313 Canadian dollars, in monthly student grants and a rent freeze in public student housing.

Businesses and cultural institutions are feeling the impact of the unrest. The Louvre, Musée d'Orsay, Picasso Museum, and Grand Palais are closed on Saturday. The Grand Palais is currently hosting a major Cézanne exhibit. Art Basel opened to the public for a single day on Friday before organizers cancelled the rest of the weekend program due to safety concerns. Shopkeepers have been reinforcing their stores all week. Akram Ahmed, a 34-year-old contractor, was boarding up an optician's shop near Saint-Lazare station on Friday. He said the owner called him the previous night and told him the action was necessary to save his life. Approximately 3,000 shops across France were damaged or looted during the previous weekend.

Authorities have banned several rallies in cities including Lyon, Nice, and Montpellier, while allowing marches to proceed in Paris and Marseille. French media reported that police used tear gas in Lyon on Saturday morning. Trade unions have criticized the local bans as violations of the constitutional right to freedom of expression. Outside the capital, two suspects were placed under formal investigation and held pending trial regarding the fire that nearly destroyed the 19th-century city hall in Limoges. The investigation includes a charge of attempted murder of a public official. Paris police prefect Patrice Faure advised shopkeepers to hire security guards, though he later clarified that protecting businesses remains a government responsibility.

President Emmanuel Macron faces this crisis in the final months of his term, with popularity at its lowest point since 2017. He said the security measures are necessary to protect city centers, businesses, and public buildings. In Orléans, about 110 kilometers south of Paris, thousands gathered for an anti-far-right protest. This event coincided with a two-day congress of Marine Le Pen's party ahead of next spring's presidential election. Victoria Ambrosini, an art critic and teacher at Saint-Denis University, stated that money is now concentrated in the hands of very few people, adding that the current situation is no longer possible.