Authorities deploy heightened security across the country and monitor hard-right National Rally congress in Orléans amid fears of renewed unrest

A new wave of cost-of-living demonstrations swept across France on Saturday, with police firing tear gas in Lyon and Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez confirming that 135 people had been arrested nationwide as of 1 pm.

In Lyon, riot police flooded the streets and reportedly deployed tear gas to disperse around 150 protesters attempting to block a road near the city centre, an area where demonstration restrictions were in force. “The police are really mobile. They come and disperse marches before they even form,” a 21-year-old student at the protest told AFP.

The unrest follows widespread violence last Saturday, when buildings and vehicles were set alight and masked individuals smashed shop windows and looted stores in several cities. Unrest continued in Paris last Sunday as masked youths erected flaming barricades and police charged crowds.

The government has ramped up security operations this weekend, and many businesses have boarded up windows or closed for the day. A last-minute route change to a planned Paris protest has drawn criticism from unions and left-wing politicians, who argue the move could scatter demonstrators and fuel further chaos. Police had initially approved a march between Bastille and Nation squares in eastern Paris but overturned the decision on Friday, proposing instead a route between Porte d’Italie and Porte de Vincennes along the city’s southeastern edge.

Authorities are also closely monitoring the hard-right National Rally party’s congress in Orléans, where Marine Le Pen and Jordan Bardella are scheduled to speak. The event has attracted both supporters and counterprotesters, raising fears of clashes. Police said forces are stationed at arrival points into the city and throughout the centre, carrying out checks and seizing items that could be used to “disrupt the smooth running of the planned events.” Around midday, officers reported seizing multiple items “intended for use in acts of violence or to create a hostile atmosphere” in locations including Orléans, Pau, Rennes, Marseille, and Tours.