France’s Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said 267 law-enforcement officers were injured and estimated 250 protesters were hurt in Oct. 24 demonstrations, putting reported injuries above 500 and arrests at 1,435.
Nuñez gave the figures in a BFMTV interview Monday and said most officers’ injuries were minor. The Interior Ministry’s provisional Oct. 25 count listed 1,314 arrests, below the updated total.
The Interior Ministry said 410,000 people attended 289 gatherings nationwide, including 110,000 in Paris. It also reported that 24 businesses were looted.
Anadolu Ajansı had reported that authorities barred several demonstrations after violence and looting the prior week, with thousands expected to demonstrate Oct. 24 in Paris and other major cities. Yellow Vests groups have announced another mobilization for Saturday, Oct. 31, framing it as a defense of civil liberties.
