New mass protests in France as police thwart banned rally

The protests mark the fourth weekend in a row of demonstrations, which have erupted as the country tilts towards presidential elections in five months' time in which the far right sees its best chance yet to win power.

Authorities expected up to 170,000 people to protest nationwide, including 60,000 in Paris. But the interior ministry counted 7,000 people protesting early afternoon nationwide, down on the same time last week and indicating a downward trend in participation, an official told AFP.

The demonstrations come after mass protests by unions on Thursday accompanied by strikes, with teaching unions vowing more walk-outs next week.

Some 70,000 members of the security forces were deployed Saturday, ready to move in quickly after mass protests on October 17 degenerated into the worst riots seen in France in years.

Unions staged a march along a traditional route, from the Place de la Republique in central Paris to Place de la Nation in the east of the city.

But the Yellow Vests movement -- a group whose protests shook Emmanuel Macron in the early years of his presidency almost a decade ago -- called for a rival demonstration at the Place de la Concorde in central Paris, a stone's throw from the president's Elysee Palace and the lower house of parliament.

This action has been banned by the authorities, and on Saturday a large police presence prevented protesters from getting close. Some 100 people who arrived were surrounded by police and one of the movement's coordinators, Benjamin Ball, and its spokeswoman, Azelma Sigaux, were apprehended by police, an AFP reporter said.

In the southeastern city of Lyon, police fired tear gas to disperse several hundred people in the city centre blocking a road during an unauthorised gathering.

"The risk is exactly the same as on previous Saturdays," said Interior Minister Laurent Nunez, calling on authorities "not to lower their guard".

- 'This can't go on' -

The wave of demonstrations was sparked by a movement in late September by high school students angered by conditions at their establishments. These teens, joined by university students, remain at the heart of the protests.

"Today is a date that helps keep the pressure on," said Sabine Kharbach, spokeswoman of the Student Union. "Many young people are mobilising because the government's responses remain unsatisfactory."

The police response has faced criticism for being heavy-handed, with dozens of internal investigations launched into allegations of brutality against demonstrators.

After several instances of apparent police brutality against AFP reporters covering the protests, the international news agency on Friday urged protection for its journalists.

Local businesses are also feeling the pain. "So this can't go on, otherwise I think it will be a disaster before long," said Paris shop manager Jean Emile Moulinier, whose store is around the main protest route and says hardly any customers brave security barricades on protest weekends.

Shop windows of stores in Paris and other cities were again barricaded with wooden shutters and often closed for the day to prevent potential ransacking.

The government is grappling with ways to find solutions but is constrained by France's gigantic debt pile which is already spooking markets.

Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu is due to meet unions and employer federation representatives on Monday to discuss wages and purchasing power.

But student and teacher groups in France have called for a new strike on Tuesday to keep pressure on the government for more education spending, saying they were "in a position of strength (and) the government in a position of weakness and starting to yield".

Polls meanwhile show that far-right candidate Marine Le Pen is the favourite to win the Elysee in 2027 with her main rival currently not one of Macron's centrist former allies but hard-left leader Jean-Luc Melenchon.

Melenchon was due to address a rally later Saturday.