Summary Nearly 1,000 people were arrested Saturday as nationwide protests resumed, France's Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez told reporters.
(Web Desk) - Nearly 1,000 people were arrested Saturday as nationwide protests resumed, France's Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez told reporters.
The unrest has spread beyond France, with violent clashes breaking out in Rome and Albania's capital of Tirana, where demonstrators set government buildings on fire.
President Donald Trump also weighed in Saturday, pointing to the turmoil in France as a warning about what he said could happen in the United States under left-wing leadership.
Earlier in the day, police officers preemptively searched protesters, and arrested people suspected of carrying potential weapons, including fireworks and ball bearings, Reuters reported.
Nuñez did not specify where the arrests were made.
In Paris, where police estimated 110,000 people marched, officers conducted more than 3,000 checks and arrested 65 people, the BBC reported.
The French Interior Ministry said about 410,000 people participated in protests nationwide, while union organizers estimated attendance at 800,000. In Paris, union organizers put turnout at 250,000, compared with the police estimate of 110,000, according to CBS News.
"Violent individuals have no place in the marches," the Paris Police Department said in a social media post. "The objective is clear: to prevent troublemakers from joining the procession, and to ensure the safety of the demonstrators."
Central Paris resembled a city under lockdown, as shopkeepers boarded up storefronts, museums closed and more than 20 metro stations suspended service.
