Shopkeepers board up and organise their OWN defence as France prepares to deploy 70,000 police against feared riots

French intelligence believes up to half a million people could take to the streets today, with attacks on public buildings and 'opportunistic lootings' expected. Last weekend's unrest left nearly 1,000 officers with injuries, more than 3,000 shops ransacked or damaged, and upwards of 2,500 people detained. The government has admitted it 'lost control'. Interior minister Laurent Nunez blames calls for violence on the 'ultra-left'.

The Louvre, Orsay and Picasso museums and the Grand Palais will all close on Saturday.

Limoges town hall was burned, and two men have been arrested over the fire.

Nunez warned: 'We are not talking about a nice protest.'