Student Riots Spread from France to Belgium

Student protests over dilapidated buildings, teacher shortages, and overcrowded classrooms have escalated into nationwide riots across France and spread to Liège, Belgium. In France, the unrest has left 215 students and 715 officers injured, with 24 schools burned or ransacked. In Lens, a 15-year-old reportedly lost his hand after picking up a police stun grenade.

Sebastien Lecornu, Prime Minister of France, ordered officials to address demands regarding school hours and teacher replacements by the end of October. He also proposed legislation to hold families financially responsible for damages to public property. This proposal drew criticism from CGT labor union head Sophie Binet, who argued it would target vulnerable families, while National Rally representative Sébastien Chenu called for more severe penalties, including cutting benefits and evicting families of rioters from social housing.

French intelligence agencies and the National Rally party have accused the far-left France Unbowed party of sparking the violence, a claim the party denies. Meanwhile, the unrest reached Liège, Belgium, on October 5, where rioters set fire to a bus shelter and clashed with police. Belgian authorities deployed water cannons and tear gas, making dozens of administrative arrests after discovering materials for Molotov cocktails.