France to deploy troops, admits to failures over weekend unrest

France will deploy troops alongside police for a massive security operation on Saturday after rioting and looting swept Paris, Marseille, Lyon and other cities on October 17. Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu and Interior Minister Laurent Nunez acknowledged intelligence and deployment failures, while targeted curfews helped restore calm. Parliament is opening an inquiry, and authorities assigned 200 investigators to identify suspects. The unrest has also raised concerns about political tensions and spreading protests across Europe.

Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu blamed the unrest on far-left groups, while those groups accused the government of underestimating anger over living costs and declining public services.

Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said authorities had kept police deployments too static and had not canceled planned police leave, and he accepted responsibility for the failures.

Police arrested a man suspected of starting the blaze that destroyed the historic Limoges town hall; officials said he was on a security watch list and belonged to an ultra-left group.

France’s benchmark 10-year government bond yield reached its highest level in 24 years as investors worried about further unrest.

UNEF called for more protests on Saturday over what it described as a deteriorating and underfunded education system, while Yellow Vest groups called for actions over rising fuel costs.

Published Oct 21, 2026 12:28 am KST

Updated Oct 21, 2026 12:51 am KST

A protester holds a placard with a photo of French president Emmanuel Macron and a guillotine in front of a burning tourism office during a demonstration against rising living costs and in solidarity with students' grievances in Lyon, France, Saturday. AP-Yonhap

PARIS — France will reinforce police with troops and mount a huge security operation for more protests planned on Saturday, the government said on Tuesday, acknowledging failures in its response to last weekend's violence.

"The deployment next Saturday will be massive," Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu said, adding that the immediate priority was to restore order after rioting and looting swept Paris, Marseille, Lyon and other cities on October 17.

In a sometimes rowdy debate, Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said the military would be deployed alongside police, while the government pledged to overhaul tactics after widespread criticism that city centres had been left vulnerable.

Targeted curfews help restore calm

Framing the crisis as a choice "between violence and the Republic", Lecornu blamed the unrest on far-left groups, who in turn have accused the government of underestimating public anger over high living costs and declining public services.

The unrest shocked France because of both its scale and the apparent inability of police to contain it, inflaming tensions ahead of presidential elections next year with candidates from the far right and hard left performing strongly in polls.

Protests in other European countries, including Italy and Albania, have added to concerns that anger over living standards risks spreading around the continent at a time when many nations, including France, are struggling with budget woes.

A night of relative calm in France followed targeted curfews imposed in several areas affected by the turmoil, which the government said had helped reassert control.

In central Paris, police emptied and guarded the Place de la Republique overnight, with a helicopter overhead. In Lille, in the north, where the curfew only applied to minors, officers patrolled the city centre, checking bypassers' identities.

Marseille mayor Benoit Payan said there would be curfews for minors around the commercial areas hardest hit by the weekend's riots, starting Tuesday night.

Lecornu acknowledged shortcomings in the state's response at the weekend, saying there had been intelligence failures, while police deployments had been too static and authorities had decided against cancelling planned police leave.

Nunez apologised for the failings. "I deeply regret what happened. I accept my share of responsibility," he said.

Suspect arrested for Limoges Town Hall destruction

Parliament is setting up a commission of inquiry to establish the causes of the unrest, while authorities have assigned 200 investigators to identify and track down those involved in the street violence.

Police arrested on Tuesday a man suspected of starting a blaze that destroyed a historic town hall in the central city of Limoges during the rioting. Officials said he had been on a security watch list and belonged to an ultra-left group.

Sylvain Maillard, a Renaissance deputy for Paris, told Reuters some apps had become "a walkie-talkie system for rioters and looters".

Underscoring the broad impact of the crisis, French borrowing costs rose further on Tuesday as investors fretted about the prospect of more unrest, with the yield on benchmark 10-year government bonds touching its highest level in 24 years.

France's main student union UNEF has called for further protests on Saturday, pledging to maintain pressure on Macron's government over what it says is a deteriorating and underfunded education system. "We carry on," it said on social media.

Separately, groups identifying themselves as "Gilets Jaunes" (Yellow Vests) called for protest actions over rising fuel costs.

The yellow vest movement, largely inactive in recent years, sprang up in 2018 during Macron's first term over plans to raise petrol taxes. Traffic blockades continued for months until the government made costly concessions it can ill afford now.

Italy faces new form of unrest, minister says

Northern Italian cities, including the financial capital Milan, were also hit by riots last weekend.

Though not on the scale seen in France, the unrest nonetheless jolted Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's government, which was expected to introduce new security measures at a cabinet meeting on Tuesday.

Defence Minister Guido Crosetto described the disturbances as a form of "hybrid warfare" conducted through social media platforms such as TikTok, YouTube and other online networks.

"The events in Milan and elsewhere in Italy are fundamentally different from those seen in other eras," Crosetto wrote on X. "The West has yet to realise this or take any meaningful action in response."

In Milan's central Corso Vittorio Emanuele II, sportswear retailer On and a Levi's store that were targeted during the unrest had reopened on Tuesday but remained boarded up. Luxury stores had restored merchandise to window displays after temporarily removing it for security reasons.

In Albania, protesters were expected to take to the streets of Tirana for a seventh consecutive day against the government of Prime Minister Edi Rama.

10月17日，巴黎、马赛、里昂等城市爆发骚乱和抢劫事件。周六，法国将部署军队与警察联合开展大规模安全行动。总理塞巴斯蒂安·勒科尔努和内政部长洛朗·努内兹承认情报和部署存在失误，但有针对性的宵禁措施帮助恢复了秩序。议会已启动调查，当局已指派200名调查人员负责识别嫌疑人。此次骚乱也引发了人们对政治紧张局势和抗议活动蔓延至整个欧洲的担忧。

总理塞巴斯蒂安·勒科尔努将骚乱归咎于极左翼团体，而这些团体则指责政府低估了民众对生活成本和公共服务下降的愤怒。

内政部长洛朗·努涅斯表示，当局的警力部署过于固定，没有取消计划中的警察休假，他承认对这些失误负有责任。

警方逮捕了一名涉嫌纵火焚毁利摩日历史悠久的市政厅的男子；官员称他已被列入安全监视名单，并且属于一个极左翼团体。

由于投资者担心局势进一步动荡，法国基准 10 年期政府债券收益率达到 24 年来的最高水平。

联合国教育论坛（UNEF）呼吁周六举行更多抗议活动，抗议其所称的教育系统日益恶化且资金不足；与此同时，“黄背心”运动团体呼吁采取行动，抗议燃油价格上涨。

发布于2026年10月21日凌晨12:28（韩国标准时间）

更新于2026年10月21日凌晨12:51（韩国标准时间）

周六，在法国里昂，一名抗议者手持印有法国总统马克龙和断头台照片的标语牌，站在一座燃烧的旅游办公室前，参加抗议生活成本上涨并声援学生诉求的示威活动。（美联社-韩联社）

巴黎——法国政府周二表示，将向警方增派军队，并针对周六计划举行的更多抗议活动开展大规模安全行动，同时承认其对上周末暴力事件的应对存在不足。

“下周六的部署规模将非常庞大，”总理塞巴斯蒂安·勒科尔努表示，并补充说，眼下的首要任务是恢复秩序，此前10月17日，巴黎、马赛、里昂和其他城市发生了骚乱和抢劫。

在一场有时略显激烈的辩论中，内政部长洛朗·努内斯表示，军队将与警察一起部署，而政府则承诺在城市中心地区安全受到广泛批评后，将彻底改革策略。

有针对性的宵禁有助于恢复平静

莱科尔努将这场危机定性为“在暴力和共和国之间”的选择，并将动乱归咎于极左翼团体，而极左翼团体则指责政府低估了公众对高昂生活成本和公共服务下降的愤怒。

这场骚乱震惊了法国，原因不仅在于其规模之大，还在于警方显然无力控制局势，这加剧了明年总统大选前的紧张局势，因为极右翼和极左翼候选人在民调中表现强劲。

意大利和阿尔巴尼亚等其他欧洲国家的抗议活动加剧了人们的担忧，即对生活水平的不满情绪有可能在整个欧洲大陆蔓延，而此时包括法国在内的许多国家正努力应对预算困境。

在法国，受动荡影响的几个地区实施了有针对性的宵禁，之后法国度过了一个相对平静的夜晚。政府表示，宵禁有助于重新控制局势。

在巴黎市中心，警方连夜清空并守卫共和国广场，一架直升机在上空盘旋。在北部城市里尔，宵禁仅适用于未成年人，警察在市中心巡逻，检查路人的身份。

马赛市长贝努瓦·帕扬表示，从周二晚上开始，在周末骚乱中受影响最严重的商业区附近将对未成年人实行宵禁。

莱科尔努承认该州周末的应对措施存在不足，称情报工作出现失误，警力部署过于僵化，而且当局决定不取消计划中的警察休假。

努涅斯为自己的失职行为道歉。“我对发生的事情深感遗憾。我愿承担我应尽的责任。”他说。

利摩日市政厅破坏案嫌疑人被捕

议会正在成立一个调查委员会，以查明骚乱的原因，同时当局已指派 200 名调查人员来识别和追踪参与街头暴力的人员。

周二，警方逮捕了一名男子，他涉嫌在骚乱期间纵火焚毁了位于中部城市利摩日的一座历史悠久的市政厅。官员称，该男子曾被列入安全监视名单，并且隶属于一个极左翼组织。

巴黎文艺复兴党议员西尔万·马亚尔告诉路透社，一些应用程序已经变成了“暴徒和抢劫者的对讲机系统”。

为了凸显危机的广泛影响，由于投资者担心局势进一步动荡，法国的借贷成本周二进一步上升，基准 10 年期政府债券收益率触及 24 年来的最高水平。

法国主要学生组织UNEF呼吁周六举行更多抗议活动，并誓言继续向马克龙政府施压，要求其解决教育体系日益恶化和资金不足的问题。该组织在社交媒体上表示：“我们将继续前进。”

此外，一些自称为“黄背心”的团体呼吁民众抗议燃油价格上涨。

“黄背心”运动近年来基本处于沉寂状态，但在2018年马克龙第一任期内，因政府计划提高汽油税而再次兴起。交通封锁持续数月，直到政府做出代价高昂的让步，而这些让步如今已难以承受。

意大利面临新形式的动荡，部长称

上周末，包括金融中心米兰在内的意大利北部城市也发生了骚乱。

尽管规模不及法国，但此次骚乱仍然震动了总理乔治亚·梅洛尼的政府，预计政府将在周二的内阁会议上推出新的安全措施。

国防部长圭多·克罗塞托将这些骚乱描述为一种“混合战争”，这种战争是通过TikTok、YouTube和其他在线网络等社交媒体平台进行的。

克罗塞托在X上写道：“米兰和意大利其他地方发生的事件与以往任何时代发生的事件都截然不同。西方尚未意识到这一点，也没有采取任何有意义的应对措施。”

在米兰市中心的维托里奥·埃马努埃莱二世大街，运动服装零售商On和一家Levi's门店在骚乱期间遭到袭击，已于周二重新开业，但仍用木板封住。奢侈品商店此前因安全原因暂时撤下橱窗展示，现已恢复陈列。

在阿尔巴尼亚，抗议者预计将连续第七天走上地拉那街头，反对总理埃迪·拉马的政府。