Curfews Imposed in Central Paris and Seven Other Cities
After Monday’s crisis meeting the prime minister gave mayors the power to impose curfews where they judged them necessary. Paris police then set one from 23:00 to 06:00 covering the Place de la République and Les Halles, with gatherings banned elsewhere in the centre. Partial curfews followed in Marseille, Bordeaux, Nice, Lyon, Lille and other northern towns.
The interior minister has survived, but only just and not quietly. Laurent Nuñez tried to resign on Sunday and the president refused, the Élysée citing “the need for continued command of law enforcement” while saying he should be transparent about what it called “intelligence and foresight failings”. Mr Nuñez has admitted police “lost control” in some cities and says two hundred investigators are reviewing footage to identify ringleaders. Sébastien Lecornu has not ruled out a state of emergency and promises a law to make those who caused damage pay for it, alongside a partial unemployment fund. The official figures now stand at more than 2,500 arrested, about a thousand police injured and more than 2,000 shops and businesses affected; the head of the chambers of commerce puts the damage in the hundreds of millions of euros, which is his own estimate rather than an insurer’s. Italy is following the same course: Matteo Salvini is sending five hundred troops to Milan after luxury stores were ransacked, with a security package before cabinet today. No fresh disorder was reported overnight under the curfew.