UN Rapporteurs: We Are 'Terrified' by Scale of Violence Against French Protesters — 8,000 Arrested

Special rapporteurs for the United Nations expressed "terror" at the level of violence directed against protesting students in France, calling on authorities to stop treating the demonstrations as a purely security matter.

According to the UN statement, the protest movement began in mid-September 2024, when secondary school students first took to the streets, followed by university students. The rapporteurs documented demands related to a functional education system, adequate living conditions, and appropriate curricula — demands that teachers have long been raising.

The rapporteurs described the arrest of several thousand protesters — most of them minors — as appearing "disproportionate" and preventing them from exercising their right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. Around 8,000 people were arrested in the context of these protests.

The statement pointed to severe and in some cases permanent injuries sustained by minors during police operations, including one student who lost his eyes and another who lost his hand, deeming this "unacceptable and unjustifiable." The rapporteurs emphasized that education is an international right that requires mobilization of all available resources.

For its part, the statement condemned acts of violence and vandalism targeting buildings and commercial establishments, and called for investigations to hold those responsible to account. The rapporteurs affirmed that they are in communication with French authorities on this matter.