France Recalls Police From Leave To Reinforce Security For Saturday’s Protests

French authorities have called police officers back from leave to boost security for fresh nationwide protests planned for October 24, a French government minister confirmed on Thursday.

Officers Called Back To Duty

French authorities have recalled law enforcement officers from leave for duty on October 24, when the country will see another wave of mass protests. Jean Didier Berger, the deputy minister attached to France’s Interior Ministry, confirmed this on Thursday.

Government Promises A Bigger Police Presence

French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu had earlier promised that police numbers would be increased at the October 24 demonstrations. He said the police presence would be large in scale. The outlet Marianne reported that Paris police urgently called reservists back to duty as well.

“We Cancelled Vacations”

“We cancelled vacations. We called in people who were supposed to be on vacation,” Berger told the TV channel BFMTV.

He said the number of law enforcement officers on duty this Saturday will rise by 20 percent compared with the previous protests on October 17. The minister also noted that military personnel and special police and gendarmerie units will support regular law enforcement forces.

How The Protests Began

The protests started in France in mid September. High school students in the Paris suburbs first took to the streets, demanding better conditions in schools. People unhappy about rising prices in the country later joined them, and the protests spread to other regions.

Nationwide Protest Drew Half A Million People

The biggest demonstration so far happened on October 17. Around 550,000 people took part, according to the Interior Ministry. French police used tear gas, stun grenades and water cannons against the protesters during that demonstration.