The second Saturday of nationwide cost-of-living protests took place on 24 October 2026. Turnout was lower than on 17 October, and there was much less destruction, but the number of arrests was far higher. The Interior Ministry counted at least 410,000 people marching across France, including 110,000 in Paris. The CGT put the figure at 800,000 protesters, 250,000 of them in the capital. On 17 October, the ministry had counted 550,000.
The court sides with the prefecture
The unions had gone to court over the route imposed in Paris, and they lost. Police said the change followed a threat assessment and was meant to keep the protests away from the city's commercial centre. The administrative court upheld the decision only hours before the marches began. The march set off from Porte d'Italie at about 2 p.m. and reached Porte de Vincennes at 5 p.m. The unions led the march, followed by protesters in raincoats carrying flags and handmade placards.
Clashes at the end of the marches
Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said "the marches went well". Even so, there was trouble once the marches ended. Riot police clashed with protesters in Paris after the peaceful march reached Porte de Vincennes. The police operation there included an elite unit that usually handles organised crime and counter-terrorism. Some protesters built makeshift barricades and threw objects at officers. Police baton-charged groups of masked youths who were smashing the windows of a car dealership. Prefectural police later said the Paris crowd "has been completely dispersed along the Cours de Vincennes".
There was also unrest in other cities. Police used tear gas in Lyon, Clermont-Ferrand and Strasbourg, and water cannon in Nice and Nantes. In Lyon, the Rhône prefecture reported 36 arrests, three damaged shops and 22 injured, 18 of them police officers. Nuñez said two people had been seriously injured, one in Clermont-Ferrand and one in Toulouse. He also mentioned attempted looting in Marseille's 5th arrondissement, adding that "all the individuals were arrested".
Arrests already far above 17 October
"As I speak to you, we are at nearly 1,000 arrests," Nuñez said. "I believe this figure will increase significantly." At the same time of day on 17 October, the count had stood at 385. In Paris, the prosecutor's office said 64 people had been arrested in connection with the march and 40 taken into custody, including six minors.
Nuñez credited the calmer day to a stronger police operation, preventive checks and about 2,000 gendarmes guarding shopping centres at high risk of looting. Nationwide, some 70,000 police officers were deployed. Asked whether the police response had been proportionate, he said no disproportionate actions had been reported to him so far, though he acknowledged that investigations could be opened.
The opposition saw it differently. Jean-Luc Mélenchon of La France Insoumise accused the police of "firing tear gas and shooting indiscriminately into the crowd at the tail end of the march". Meanwhile, the courts have been dealing with the aftermath of 17 October: hundreds of people have been jailed for vandalism, arson and looting after fast-track hearings in recent days.
The consolidated arrest figure for 24 October has not been published yet. The next big date is the strike day the unions have called for Thursday, 5 November.
The second Saturday of nationwide cost-of-living protests took place on 24 October 2026. Turnout was lower than on 17 October, and there was much less destruction, but the number of arrests was far higher. The Interior Ministry counted at least 410,000 people marching across France, including 110,000 in Paris. The CGT put the figure at 800,000 protesters, 250,000 of them in the capital. On 17 October, the ministry had counted 550,000.
The court sides with the prefecture
The unions had gone to court over the route imposed in Paris, and they lost. Police said the change followed a threat assessment and was meant to keep the protests away from the city's commercial centre. The administrative court upheld the decision only hours before the marches began. The march set off from Porte d'Italie at about 2 p.m. and reached Porte de Vincennes at 5 p.m. The unions led the march, followed by protesters in raincoats carrying flags and handmade placards.
Clashes at the end of the marches
Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said "the marches went well". Even so, there was trouble once the marches ended. Riot police clashed with protesters in Paris after the peaceful march reached Porte de Vincennes. The police operation there included an elite unit that usually handles organised crime and counter-terrorism. Some protesters built makeshift barricades and threw objects at officers. Police baton-charged groups of masked youths who were smashing the windows of a car dealership. Prefectural police later said the Paris crowd "has been completely dispersed along the Cours de Vincennes".
There was also unrest in other cities. Police used tear gas in Lyon, Clermont-Ferrand and Strasbourg, and water cannon in Nice and Nantes. In Lyon, the Rhône prefecture reported 36 arrests, three damaged shops and 22 injured, 18 of them police officers. Nuñez said two people had been seriously injured, one in Clermont-Ferrand and one in Toulouse. He also mentioned attempted looting in Marseille's 5th arrondissement, adding that "all the individuals were arrested".
Arrests already far above 17 October
"As I speak to you, we are at nearly 1,000 arrests," Nuñez said. "I believe this figure will increase significantly." At the same time of day on 17 October, the count had stood at 385. In Paris, the prosecutor's office said 64 people had been arrested in connection with the march and 40 taken into custody, including six minors.
Nuñez credited the calmer day to a stronger police operation, preventive checks and about 2,000 gendarmes guarding shopping centres at high risk of looting. Nationwide, some 70,000 police officers were deployed. Asked whether the police response had been proportionate, he said no disproportionate actions had been reported to him so far, though he acknowledged that investigations could be opened.
The opposition saw it differently. Jean-Luc Mélenchon of La France Insoumise accused the police of "firing tear gas and shooting indiscriminately into the crowd at the tail end of the march". Meanwhile, the courts have been dealing with the aftermath of 17 October: hundreds of people have been jailed for vandalism, arson and looting after fast-track hearings in recent days.
The consolidated arrest figure for 24 October has not been published yet. The next big date is the strike day the unions have called for Thursday, 5 November.
Sources