French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said 36 cases tied to school protests had been referred to the police inspectorate by Oct. 13, as serious injuries to teenagers intensified scrutiny of police tactics.
Nuñez told a Senate hearing that four referrals concerned mutilating injuries and six concerned significant injuries. The cases went to the Inspection générale de la police nationale (IGPN), France’s police inspectorate.
Human Rights Watch said a police tear-gas round broke a 14-year-old’s jaw and a 15-year-old lost a hand when a police stun grenade exploded. Accounts of what happened immediately before the round was fired differ, leaving the sequence of the 14-year-old’s injury disputed.
The Commission nationale consultative des droits de l’homme (CNCDH), France’s national human rights advisory commission, called for restraint and talks with students. It urged officials to distinguish the students’ demands from violent acts around the demonstrations. The government has defended its response by citing attacks on officers and property damage.
As of 11 a.m. ET (15:00 UTC) on Oct. 8, 6,877 people had been placed in police custody since the unrest began, the Justice Ministry said. They included 5,890 minors; 2,376 people faced prosecution. The figures are a snapshot from that date.
Education Minister Édouard Geffray told lawmakers that schools had recorded 215 injured students as of Oct. 7. Geffray said damage would keep 24 schools closed for several weeks, leaving 30,000 students without in-person classes during that period.
Geffray traced the protests to complaints about uncovered staff absences at a school in Créteil around Sept. 17 or 18. Students have also raised concerns about crowded classes and school conditions.
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said on Oct. 20 that a government consultation had received more than 100,000 contributions. It is due to close Oct. 23, with initial measures expected early the following week as lawmakers consider the proposed 2027 budget.
