French protesters clash with police in day of rage to 'block everything'

About 100,000 are expected to take part in demonstrations across France as new prime minister is sworn in

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  Protesters blockade a viaduct in Caen, France, during demonstrations over the government's proposed austerity measures to reduce the public debt. AFP

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  Various protest groups called for the general strike under the slogan 'Bloquons Tout', which is French for 'Block Everything'. AFP

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  Student protesters face anti-riot police in Marseille. AFP

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  A protester faces anti-riot police in Marseille. AFP

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  Protestors move trolleys and carry pallets and tyres after to be used as flaming barricades during the protests. AFP

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  An inscription reading "Sanofric in mourning" (playing on words between Sanofi and Fric, which means Dough) during a strike at French pharmaceutical company Sanofi's production site. AFP

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  A student is carried on a trolley outside the Claude Monnet high school, wearing a mask depicting France's Prime Minister Francois Bayrou during the protests. AFP

A call on social media for anti-government protests appeared to be widely followed across France on Wednesday, as police clashed with demonstrators and traffic was disrupted.

Adding to the sense of political crisis, France's newly appointed Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu – the fifth in less than two years – was sworn in on the same day, after the previous government collapsed over budget cuts.

"There is no impossible path," Mr Lecornu said during his inaugural speech. "We must put an end to the discrepancy between the political situation and what citizens expect from us when it comes to their daily lives."

There were tense scenes around Gare du Nord in Paris, as riot police pushed back protesters with batons after they attempted to storm the train station. Some 295 people have been arrested, the Interior Ministry said.

A burning restaurant on Place Joachim-du-Bellay in Paris. (Photo by Alain JOCARD / AFP)

Other protests were peaceful, with national TV broadcasting images of hundreds of people standing in the street with placards in the southern city of Marseille.

Some 80,000 police and gendarmerie were deployed across the country, the Interior Ministry said on X, alongside a video of a ring road being cleared of debris in the western city of Rennes.

"No violence will be tolerated," the Interior Ministry said.

French media reported that 100,000 people were expected to take part in the demonstrations.

Speaking on BFMTV from the northern city of Calais, Green leader Marine Tondelier described the sit-in that she took part in as calm. "There is joy. There is dignity," she said.

Left-wing parties have attempted to surf the wave of discontent. Opposition politicians have predicted further political difficulties in the country after Mr Macron chose Mr Lecornu, a loyalist, to be the next premier.

The president's central block was weakened after a snap election in July last year. The far-right, led by the National Rally, as well as a leftist coalition, which has since fractured, came out strengthened.

National Rally leader Marine Le Pen wrote in a social media post on Tuesday that Macron had fired his last shot in naming Mr Lecornu and that new parliamentary elections were inevitable.

The "Block Everything" movement – a broad expression of discontent with no centralised leadership and an ad hoc organisation by social media – sprung up online in May among right-wing groups, researchers and officials said.

In the western city of Nantes, protesters blocked a motorway with burning tyres and bins. Police used tear gas to disperse people trying to occupy a roundabout in the same city.

Protesters face tear gas while blocking traffic in Montpellier, France. Reuters

In Montpellier, in the south-west, police scuffled with protesters who had set up a barricade to block traffic at a roundabout. A protester carried a banner that read: "Macron resign".

Police used tear gas to disperse the protesters, some of whom threw various objects at them.

Motorway operator Vinci reported protests and traffic disruptions on highways throughout the country, including Marseille, Montpellier, Nantes and Lyon.

The "Block Everything" movement reflects popular discontent with what protesters deem a dysfunctional ruling elite preaching a painful gospel of austerity.

It has drawn comparisons to the 2018 "Yellow Vest" protests, which initially arose over fuel price hikes but morphed into a broader movement against Mr Macron and his plans for economic reform.