Macron’s Concert Outing Draws Fire as French Riots Leave Nearly 1,800 Arrested

French President Emmanuel Macron is under fire for attending a Celine Dion concert on Friday night, just hours before nationwide protests over the cost of living, school conditions and public services descended into widespread rioting that left hundreds of emergency workers injured and nearly 1,800 people arrested.

Macron and his wife, Brigitte, were seen among roughly 35,000 spectators at Dion’s show at the Plenitude Arena in Nanterre, outside Paris, French media reported. The couple reportedly slipped in and out of the venue discreetly.

The concert followed two days Macron spent in Brussels for a European Council meeting. At a Friday news conference there, he urged “calm and respect” ahead of Saturday’s planned demonstrations, saying the right to protest had to be exercised with respect for people and property.

That call went unheeded. By Saturday, protests over rising living costs, school conditions and declining public services had turned violent in cities across the country, with clashes between demonstrators and police, fires, looting and attacks on public buildings.

Scale of the unrest

French authorities said Sunday that nearly 1,800 people had been arrested nationwide, including 855 in the Paris region. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez reported more than 500 police officers, gendarmes and firefighters injured. One protester died of cardiac arrest during the Paris demonstrations, authorities said.

In Limoges, officials said a fire deliberately set at city hall caused significant damage to the historic building. Shops were looted in Paris, Bordeaux, Marseille, Lyon and elsewhere, and public buildings were vandalized or set ablaze in multiple cities.

Authorities estimated more than 550,000 people took part in demonstrations nationwide; organizers put the number closer to 800,000.

Macron condemned the destruction in a Saturday evening post on X, warning that those responsible for damaging property, attacking public buildings and looting businesses would face prosecution. He voiced support for law enforcement and cautioned against efforts to undermine French institutions. The statement came only after violence had already spread through several major cities, prompting questions about whether the government had adequately prepared for the demonstrations.

From student protest to national unrest

The unrest grew out of a month-long student movement over school conditions and teacher shortages in working-class suburbs before expanding into a broader protest against inequality, public spending cuts and the rising cost of living.

Government officials have placed blame on violent groups and looters rather than the protest movement itself. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu attributed the destruction to the “ultra-left” and criminal elements, while opposition figures criticized the government’s handling of the violence ahead of next year’s presidential election.

Right-wing leader Marine Le Pen condemned the looting and destruction. Left-wing leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon defended protesters’ broader grievances while criticizing the government’s response, accusing Lecornu of “playing with fire,” according to reports.

Mounting costs

Businesses are tallying substantial losses. Carrefour CEO Alexandre Bompard told French television that 50 of the retailer’s stores were damaged, including 20 that were looted, with losses estimated in the tens of millions of euros, according to Reuters.

The mayors of Paris, Marseille and Lyon have requested a meeting with the prime minister to discuss the damage, and local officials in Marseille and Bordeaux have proposed emergency aid for affected businesses.

Macron is scheduled to address the nation at 8 p.m. local time Sunday, 2 p.m. Eastern, after meeting with senior officials, as the country begins cleanup efforts and prosecutors prepare cases against those arrested. The speech is shaping up as a major test of his government amid growing pressure over the destruction, the police response and the grievances that drove hundreds of thousands into the streets.