Paris [France], October 5 (ANI): Several schools across France will be shut on Monday after protests by students has snowballed.
According to a report by France24, French Education Minister Edouard Geffray said that lessons will be “totally or partly suspended” in some “400-500” high schools as the security conditions “have not been fulfilled”. The Education Minister further informed French media that 24 schools had been “burned or ransacked” since the start of the movement.
The movement began on September 21, 2026, at a school in Créteil. Students, parents, and teachers gathered in front of the school gates with a concrete demand: more resources for education. Other high school students joined the movement and, in turn, blocked other high schools in the Île-de-France region.
A few days later, the movement spread throughout the country with violent incidents involving students and police forces reported at several places. Police were also seen using tear gas and baton charge to dispel protesting students, France 24 reported. Organisers have called for the protests to continue citing a lack of “concrete measures” from the government.
There has been criticism for the police response to student protestors. Rights group Amnesty International said the student protestors “must be listened to, not repressed”
“Since September 21st, the high school blockade movement has been steadily gaining momentum in France. The mobilized students are simply demanding their right to education: they are asking for teachers, smaller class sizes, and decent school buildings. Their response: tear gas, stun grenades, and arrests. We condemn the disproportionate use of force against the student protests. Here’s an overview of the situation to understand this back-to-school movement, led by young people,” Amnesty France said.
“To this initially peaceful student movement, the authorities responded with force, including tear gas, baton blows and large-scale arrests: 164 arrests on September 28, 440 arrests on September 29, 625 arrests on September 30 and 1948 arrests on October 6. Let’s remember: many are minors, children. They must be protected, not beaten. Even as minors, high school students have the right to demonstrate peacefully, including through blockades, protected by the freedom of peaceful assembly. The authorities must open a dialogue with these young people whose demands are legitimate. And they must prioritize de-escalation, not the use of weapons,” Amnesty further stated
France24 quoted Interior Minister Laurent Nunez as saying, that security forces “are not cracking down on young people” but rather “protecting” school and university students wishing to “peacefully voice their demands”. (ANI)