Hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets across Europe on Saturday as youth-led demonstrations over the cost of living, underfunded schools and public spending cuts entered a third consecutive weekend in France and spread to dozens of German cities.
According to the Associated Press, France's government estimated that 320,000 people protested nationwide on Saturday, including about 70,000 in Paris. The figure was down from 410,000 the previous weekend and 550,000 on October 17, when mass protests deteriorated into some of France's worst rioting in years.
The French marches drew together groups that do not always march side by side: high school students who have been calling for better conditions for a month, trade unions and yellow-vest protesters, united by anger at living costs, widening inequality and the government of President Emmanuel Macron. According to the BBC, about 70,000 police and gendarmes were deployed across the country, and Paris marches were rerouted to the edge of the capital to protect shops, government buildings and tourist areas.
In Germany, a youth initiative called Gen Z regelt, roughly translated as "Gen Z takes charge," rallied in more than 30 cities for education, health, climate protection and an affordable life, and against any return of military conscription. According to the BBC, authorities in Frankfurt, Munich and Berlin counted up to 18,000 protesters combined, about half the organisers' estimate.
The daytime marches were largely orderly, but the evening brought disorder in several German cities. According to the BBC, shops in central Frankfurt were broken into and looted late on Saturday, and police said many people were arrested after windows were smashed and Molotov cocktails thrown at emergency services.
Student protesters in France have vowed to stage new blockades at high schools and universities on Tuesday and Thursday, then join a demonstration on November 5 called by workers and trade unions.
Sources: Associated Press, BBC News