Macron rejects Interior Minister's resignation after police lose control of riots

President Emmanuel Macron has refused to accept the resignation of Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez, who admitted police lost control during a weekend of violent protests and looting across France.

Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez offered to step down on Monday, citing a feel of responsibility for the unrest. France 24 reported that Nuñez admitted to a "lack of anticipation" in security preparations for the demonstrations, which saw approximately 500,000 people march on Saturday to protest the cost of living. Despite the minister's offer, Reuters confirmed that Macron declined the resignation.

The protests escalated into severe violence and property damage. According to Euronews, around 60,000 police and gendarmes were deployed, but Nuñez acknowledged this was too few to stop crowds from looting hundreds of shops and setting fire to town halls. The minister stated it was only right to resign given that he could not look shopkeepers in the eye and claim the state remained in control.

On social media platforms like TikTok and X, participants posted videos bragging about the theft of items such as sportswear, cigarettes, sunglasses, jewellery, and food. AFP journalists witnessed masked men in Paris breaking through metal shutters to clear store shelves. One individual interviewed in a video claimed the unrest was a reaction to fuel prices and systemic racism, warning of continued chaos if conditions do not change.

The New York Times reported that the far-right National Rally party is using the crisis to advocate for stricter law and order policies. Currently leading in the polls, the party has positioned itself as the primary force capable of restoring security as the government faces intense scrutiny over the weekend's events.

Background

The unrest followed a nationwide mobilization on Saturday where half a million people demonstrated against the rising cost of living, leading to some of the worst violence France has seen in years.