France crisis cabinet convenes after weekend of looting and mass injury

French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu convened a crisis cabinet meeting Monday to assess a weekend of violence that left an estimated 1,500 shops and businesses looted or destroyed and around 1,000 police officers injured, seven of them seriously.

More than half a million mainly peaceful protesters took to the streets Saturday to demonstrate against rising living costs and declining access to public services, including state education. The protests turned violent after groups of black-clad, masked activists and vandals joined the crowds. Riot police responded with tear gas, water cannon and batons.

President Emmanuel Macron had faced calls to impose a temporary curfew or a state of emergency. Instead, he used a televised address on Sunday to call for national unity and to promise that perpetrators of the violence would be punished.