Cost-of-living protests turn violent in France as unrest reaches other European cities
Protests over living costs, fuel prices and public services drew an estimated 550,000 to 800,000 people across France, where violence included looting, arson and attacks on public buildings. DW also reported violence in Milan and housing-cost protests in Lisbon, while France’s Interior Ministry said roughly 2,400 people were arrested over the weekend.
Bottom line — Limoges’s 143-year-old town hall was largely lost to fire, and French authorities say those responsible will be prosecuted.
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In Limoges, the regional prefect told AFP the town hall’s roof had collapsed and two-thirds of its exterior had disappeared.
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France’s Interior Ministry said roughly 500 police officers, firefighters and paramedics were injured; a 17-year-old in Saint-Étienne lost his right hand to a crowd-control grenade, DW reported.
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DW estimated that about 1,500 French businesses were damaged, with owners facing losses in the hundreds of millions of euros.
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In Milan, masked demonstrators threw objects at riot police and set fire to barricades; local agencies reported about 50 people detained.
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In Lisbon, a protest over living costs and housing ended with an overnight camp in a central square, DW reported.
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DW reported Portuguese inflation at 3.6% in September and housing prices up 124% between 2015 and 2024.