French PM Urges Calm as Student Blockades Intensify Amid 164 Arrests

Mon Sep 28 2026 22:44:24 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

French PM warns of unrestrained violence after 164 students and staff face arrests amid nationwide school blockades.

France’s Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has condemned the escalation of student protests that have seen 164 arrests in a week of school blockades. The demonstrations, sparked by overcrowded classrooms and teacher shortages, are now spreading across the country. Lecornu insists that violence must be condemned and urges the government to address educational grievances, while opposition parties accuse the state of over‑repression. An investigation into the use of a grenade launcher by police at one of the protests is ongoing.

France’s Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has warned that any escalation in the current wave of student protests would be "irresponsible" following the arrest of 164 people in a single week of Wednesday demonstrations.

The protests, which began in Paris and have now spread to regions such as Lille, Marseille and the southeast, centre on issues including overcrowded classes, teacher shortages and the stresses of the national university‑application platform Parcoursup.

Lecornu took to the social‑media platform X to condemn reports of fireworks, fires and violence near high schools, saying that such conduct "does nothing to justify endangering students, staff or police officers."

Despite the Prime Minister’s call for calm, a union that represents high‑school students – the Union Syndicale Lycéenne – has described the blockades as a legitimate response to years of austerity.

Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said on Monday that 12 security personnel, 12 students and three teachers were injured, while 180 schools were affected. He declined to detail the total number of those arrested.

In response to the crackdown, Lecornu accused the far‑left party, France Unbowed (LFI), of encouraging students to expand the movement. LFI leader Jean‑Luc Mélenchon has, in turn, criticised the government for a perceived "over‑repression" of otherwise harmless students.

Toward the end of the week, several incidents of violence between students and police officers were reported. In one high‑profile case, police reportedly fired a round from a crowd‑control grenade launcher at a student, an incident that has prompted an ongoing investigation by France’s public‑security broadcaster BFMTV.