France: 410,000 march again under 70,000 police. Is Europe following?

Tear gas and a water cannon at Porte de Vincennes in Paris, clashes in Marseille, Lille and Lyon. On Saturday 24 October, France saw its second weekend of mass protests in a row. About 410,000 people marched across the country according to the Interior Ministry, and 800,000 according to the CGT union, as reported by franceinfo. In Paris the figures were 110,000 and 250,000.

That is fewer than a week earlier: on 17 October more than 500,000 people took to the streets, with violence and looting, Al Jazeera reported.

Earlier: How the wave began, from a school gate in Créteil to 550,000 in the streets.

How large was the security operation?

Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said about 70,000 police and gendarmes would be deployed on Saturday, roughly 10,000 more than the weekend before. That is an increase of about one sixth. Posts on social media speak of 20%, which the official figures do not support.

The authorities also restricted protests. President Emmanuel Macron allowed only union demonstrations this weekend. Paris extended its night curfew until Monday, and Lyon banned gatherings in central areas.

What are people protesting about?

The movement started with students protesting about teacher shortages and school conditions. It grew with online calls to protest against fuel prices and the cost of living, The Irish Times wrote. Unions have called a protest and strike for 5 November.

Is it spreading to the rest of Europe?

Protests are planned in several countries this weekend, Newsweek reports, but they are not one movement:

• Italy: marches in several cities, including Rome and Milan, against the cost of living and the state of public services.
• Spain: a union march through central Madrid over pensions, after weeks of protests about housing costs.
• Portugal: more housing protests expected in Lisbon and Porto.
• Ireland: pro-Palestinian gatherings, not linked to the French protests.
• Austria: small events in Vienna in support of gender equality.

Earlier, in Belgium, high school students joined in solidarity with France, according to The Irish Times.

What we do not know yet

As of Saturday evening, the sources we read give no count of arrests or injuries for 24 October. The two crowd figures differ by a factor of two, and neither has been independently verified.