Germany and France brace for protests on Halloween weekend

A wave of youth-led protests has swept Europe, with demonstrators denouncing rising prices and a lack of prospects.

Workers install wooden boards over the windows of a luxury boutique in Berlin, Germany, on October 30, 2026, ahead of a planned protest [Ebrahim Noroozi/AP]

Germany and France are preparing for potential protests over the weekend that could coincide with Halloween festivities.

Approximately 150,000 people in Germany have registered to turn out in about 30 cities, including Berlin, Frankfurt and Cologne, to protest on Saturday.

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Police plan to deploy thousands of additional officers across the country. Some luxury jewellery shops and clothing stores have boarded up windows to protect against potential looting or violence.

Protests in Germany are led by a group dubbed “GenZ regelt!”, which translates to “Gen Z has got this!”.

The German protest movement’s complaints include the high cost of living, poorly maintained schools, government spending cuts and, more broadly, politicians taking decisions with little regard for the younger generation.

A wave of largely youth-led protests has swept across Europe in recent weeks, many with similar complaints: rising prices, declining educational facilities and what many protesters see as a lack of prospects for their future.

Many of those grievances mirror those of the youth-led protests that have convulsed French cities and towns for three consecutive weekends.

Shops and businesses in Paris and other cities were boarding up windows on Friday.

French police are preparing for another weekend of potential protests and violence by deploying 70,000 police officers nationwide. More than 40 metro stations in Paris will be closed.

Authorities have also said face-covering masks will not be allowed at the demonstrations.

France’s interior minister has warned of a “very high risk” of disorder over the weekend.

Two weeks ago, widespread unrest broke out in cities and towns across France as demonstrations against the cost of living and conditions in schools descended into large-scale looting and riots.

Since then, French authorities have sought to clamp down on violent protests, but last weekend saw further demonstrations across the country, including intermittent clashes with the police.

Alain Di Crescenzo, president of France’s Chamber of Commerce, said businesses were worried.

“Shopkeepers can’t wait for Saturday to be over,” Di Crescenzo told broadcaster France Inter.

Halloween “is not helping matters”, he said, “because we’re going to have people wearing masks”.

一波由年轻人领导的抗议浪潮席卷欧洲，示威者谴责物价上涨和缺乏发展前景。

2026年10月30日，在德国柏林，工人们在一家奢侈品精品店的窗户上安装木板，以应对计划中的抗议活动。[Ebrahim Noroozi/AP]

德国和法国正在为周末可能发生的抗议活动做准备，这些抗议活动可能与万圣节庆祝活动重合。

德国约有 15 万人登记参加周六在柏林、法兰克福、科隆等约 30 个城市举行的抗议活动。

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法国严阵以待，应对万圣节抗议活动中可能发生的“极高风险”骚乱（共3条，此为第2条）

意大利加强安保，学生和工会发起全国性抗议活动（共3条，此为第3条）

警方计划在全国范围内增派数千名警力。一些高档珠宝店和服装店已用木板封住橱窗，以防止可能发生的抢劫或暴力事件。

德国的抗议活动由一个名为“GenZ regelt!”的团体领导，该团体的意思是“Z世代搞定了！”。

德国抗议运动的诉求包括生活成本高昂、学校维护不善、政府削减开支，以及更广泛意义上，政客们在做决定时很少顾及年轻一代的利益。

最近几周，一波主要由年轻人领导的抗议浪潮席卷了欧洲，许多抗议者的诉求类似：物价上涨、教育设施下降，以及许多抗议者认为他们缺乏未来前景。

这些不满与连续三个周末席卷法国城镇的青年抗议活动所表达的不满如出一辙。

周五，巴黎和其他城市的商店和企业纷纷用木板封住窗户。

法国警方为应对周末可能发生的抗议和暴力事件，在全国范围内部署了7万名警力。巴黎将关闭40多个地铁站。

当局还表示，示威活动中不允许佩戴遮盖面部的口罩。

法国内政部长警告称，周末发生骚乱的风险“非常高”。

两周前，法国各地城镇爆发了大规模骚乱，民众抗议生活成本和学校条件，随后演变成大规模抢劫和暴乱。

此后，法国当局试图镇压暴力抗议活动，但上周末全国各地又爆发了示威活动，期间还与警方发生了零星冲突。

法国商会主席阿兰·迪·克雷申佐表示，企业界对此感到担忧。

“店主们都盼着星期六赶紧过去，”迪·克雷申佐告诉法国国际广播公司。

他说：“万圣节对事情没有帮助，因为人们会戴上口罩。”