France braces for more unrest, Gen Z protests in Germany

France will deploy a 70,000-strong police presence to contain a widely expected bout of fresh unrest today in the latest nationwide protests.

The demonstrations are driven by anger over living costs, public services and President Emmanuel Macron's government.

The nationwide demonstrations, which fall on Halloween, come two weeks after riots and looting caught security forces off guard, leaving damaged shops, public buildings and businesses in cities across France.

Interior Minister Laurent Nunez has vowed not to let a repeat happen.

"Everyone is on deck to ensure an extremely firm response to any trouble," Mr Nunez told a news conference earlier this week as he set out details of security arrangements for a day he described as carrying "a very high risk" of unrest.

Authorities are also alert to the possibility that rioters could use Halloween masks to conceal their identities.

Ms Nunez noted that laws already allow police to ban face coverings when public order is at risk.

The US Embassy advised travellers to avoid areas where demonstrations or large gatherings are planned.

The protests gathered pace in late September as Mr Macron's minority government launched 2027 budget talks.

Facing public debt approaching 120% of economic output and rising borrowing costs, the government is under pressure to rein in spending, narrowing its room for manoeuvre.

Students angry at the dilapidated state of many schools, crowded classes and a university admissions system widely seen as unfair have been joined by trade unions and a re-emergent "Yellow Vest" movement demanding action on the cost of living.

The French government's promises to reform education and ease fuel costs have failed to calm discontent.

The unrest has handed a political boost to far-right leader Marine Le Pen, who leads opinion polls ahead of April's presidential election, while potential centrist successors to Macron remain divided.

The government is pushing ahead with a controversial law making rioters liable to pay up to €10,000 ($11,000) for damage caused either by themselves or by groups they are deemed to be part of. Rights groups and some lawyers say the measure risks undermining the right to peaceful protest.

Over 160,000 expected at German Gen Z Halloween rallies

More than 160,000 people across Germany are expected to join demonstrations today, organisers say, as a youth-led movement inspired by protests elsewhere in Europe takes to the streets to demand better education and lower living costs.

The protests follow a wave of Gen Z-led demonstrations across Europe this year.

In Serbia, student-led activism helped unseat the country's long-time leader at the ballot box, while protests in France have descended into rioting and looting.

The German protests, organised by campaign group Gen Z regelt (Gen Z takes charge), are planned in 34 cities including Berlin, Frankfurt and Munich.

The group says it opposes compulsory military service and wants greater investment in education as many young Germans struggle with rising costs.

German authorities say they expect the demonstrations, which coincide with Halloween festivities, to be largely peaceful but have warned of attempts by extremist groups to exploit the movement.

Parts of Germany's far-left extremist scene and some groups linked to foreign extremist movements have joined efforts to mobilise support, according to the federal interior ministry.

"We all have those images from France in our minds - looting, burning houses, burning police vehicles, and attacks on police officers," said Roman Poseck, interior minister for the state of Hesse, whose capital is Germany's financial hub, Frankfurt.

"France must not be held up as a model in this regard."

In Berlin, some businesses along the luxury Kurfürstendamm shopping boulevard boarded up windows and planned early closures ahead of the demonstrations amid concerns about possible unrest.