# France Protests Under Way as 70,000 Police Deploy; 135 Arrests Reported by Early Afternoon

- Link: https://tectonicsmediapublications.com/france-70000-police-paris-museums-close-protests-october-24-2026/
- Published: 2026-10-24T00:42:16+00:00
- Author: News Team

**PARIS, October 24, 2026** — Demonstrators took to streets across France on Saturday
under a nationwide deployment of about 70,000 police officers and gendarmes, while
major Paris museums closed amid concerns about renewed unrest.

Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez outlined the security operation on Friday, saying
police would be supported by mobile units and specialist equipment. The plans follow
violent clashes, fires and looting during protests the previous weekend. Authorities
say their priority is to protect people and public buildings; organizers and demonstrators
continue to press grievances over living costs and public services.

The Louvre, Musée d’Orsay, Picasso Museum and Grand Palais are among the cultural
institutions expected to close on Saturday, according to a statement from France’s
Culture Ministry reported by the Associated Press. The Art Basel Paris fair also
canceled its weekend public program at the Grand Palais, citing safety concerns.

Demonstrations were held in Paris, Marseille and other cities, despite restrictions
or bans on some gatherings in locations including Lyon, Nice and Montpellier. Separately,
anti-far-right protesters rallied in Orléans alongside a National Rally party congress.

**UPDATE — October 24, afternoon:** The planned marches are now under way. Interior
Minister Laurent Nuñez said that, by 1 p.m., authorities had recorded about 35,000
demonstrators at 136 public actions nationwide and 135 arrests. Those figures were
an early-afternoon snapshot, not a final turnout or arrest total. Nuñez said there
had been no major incident at that point, according to [Le Monde’s live coverage](https://www.lemonde.fr/societe/live/2026/10/24/en-direct-manifestations-du-24-octobre-bien-sur-qu-on-a-peur-mais-si-on-ne-vient-pas-ils-ont-gagne-suivez-la-mobilisation-avec-nos-correspondants-a-marseille-paris-ou-lyon_6799445_3224.html).

By later in the day, the Associated Press reported a police estimate of about 110,000
participants in Paris alone. The later figure is not directly comparable with the
minister’s earlier nationwide snapshot. Reuters reported scattered clashes in some
cities, including the use of tear gas and water cannon, while much of the Paris 
march remained peaceful. The demonstrations brought together people protesting high
living costs, education conditions and public-service cuts.

The government says its deployment of 70,000 police and gendarmes is intended to
prevent a repeat of the previous weekend’s disorder. Civil-liberties advocates and
some organizers have criticized bans and route restrictions as disproportionate.
[Associated Press, October 24](https://apnews.com/article/ad2fb9206e72e5d1b4ae43fdf7aa96a9);
[Reuters, October 24](https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/france-mounts-huge-security-operation-protesters-prepare-march-2026-10-24/).

**Image note:** The featured photograph is an **archive image from a Paris demonstration
on October 17, 2026**, not a photograph of the October 24 deployment. Photo: Jorge
Jaramillo / JJxFile, via Wikimedia Commons, [CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).
[Original image and license details](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Paris_riots,_17_October_2026_-_Masked_protester_in_tear_gas_-_JJxFile_0007.jpg).
Responsive crops may be generated for display.

**Sources:** [Associated Press, October 23, 2026](https://apnews.com/article/paris-protests-france-art-basel-0208e62321f811e3003460f71b7fcc89);
[Reuters, October 23, 2026](https://www.reuters.com/world/france-mobilise-70000-security-forces-saturday-protest-interior-minister-says-2026-10-23/).

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