More than 1,300 are arrested across France as 'ultra-left' groups clash with police after cost-of-living marches
Clashes between protesters and riot police in Paris, as largely peaceful nationwide marches turned violent by evening despite a 70,000-strong deployment that prevented the arson seen a week earlier.Riots in Paris. Activists have called a further day of protests for 31 October after Saturday's marches drew between 410,000 and 800,000 people nationwide.
Laurent Nuñez, the interior minister, reported 53 injured officers and said police had confiscated a katana, slingshots, steel balls and fireworks. Roughly 410,000 people took part in 298 marches, against the General Confederation of Labor's estimate of 800,000. Looting on the day was on a much smaller scale than the previous week, when around 3,000 businesses were damaged. Up to 70,000 officers, supported by armoured vehicles and water cannon, were deployed.
Paris resident Almudena Garcia watched masked rioters beat her husband after he stepped in to defend a friend.
