Protesters blocked roads, set fires and were met with volleys of tear gas in Paris and other French cities on Wednesday as a loosely organized "Bloquons Tout" or "Block Everything" movement sought to put pressure on President Emmanuel Macron by challenging his newly appointed government.
Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau said nearly 200 people were arrested in the opening hours of the planned day of nationwide demonstrations and that an exceptional deployment of 80,000 police was mobilized to break up barricades and clear hot spots of disruption. Authorities reported that a bus was set alight in the western city of Rennes and that damage to a power line in the southwest briefly blocked train services.
Groups of demonstrators repeatedly tried to block Paris’ beltway during the morning rush hour, erecting barricades, hurling objects at officers and slowing traffic. Police used tear gas and made swift arrests as they dismantled barricades and dispersed assemblies. Retailleau said authorities believed some protesters were attempting to create "a climate of insurrection." Observers said, however, that the initial wave of action fell short of the movement’s declared aim to "Block Everything" nationwide.
The protests came three days after Prime Minister François Bayrou lost a parliamentary confidence vote, prompting Macron to appoint Sébastien Lecornu as prime minister on Tuesday. The timing presented a test for the new cabinet only hours after it assumed office, reviving memories of past unrest that repeatedly challenged Macron’s leadership.
The "Block Everything" movement emerged over the summer through social media and encrypted messaging channels, gathering momentum without a clearly identified leadership or central organization. Its participants have put forward a wide range of demands, many aimed at contested fiscal tightening measures championed by Bayrou before his government’s collapse, along with broader grievances about inequality and public services.
Analysts and participants compared the movement’s spontaneity to the so-called yellow vest protests that convulsed the country in 2018 and 2019. Those demonstrations began with roadblocks and protests against a fuel tax rise before expanding into sustained nationwide unrest that cut across political and social lines. France has also seen large-scale unrest in 2023, including riots sparked by the fatal police shooting of a teenager on the outskirts of Paris, and widespread anger over pension reforms after Macron’s reelection in 2022.
Authorities said the heavy police presence and rapid arrests limited the scale of disruption in several places, but localized clashes persisted throughout the day in Paris and in cities including Rennes. Railway operators reported service interruptions where infrastructure was damaged. Officials said they would continue operations to restore lines and clear blocked routes.
Organizers and participants in the decentralized movement did not present a single list of demands, underscoring the challenge for the new government in responding to diffuse anger. Macron’s administration faces renewed pressure to address economic grievances even as it confronts immediate political instability and the task of securing support for its budget plans in the legislature.