France is burning again. Riot police clashed with thousands of furious students across the country as protests over crumbling schools, missing teachers and budget cuts exploded into the worst youth unrest in years.
Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez confirmed a staggering 1,747 people were arrested on Friday alone as the demonstrations spiraled from classroom walkouts to full-blown street riots.
Fires blazed in Brest, tear gas choked the air in Strasbourg, and rubbish bins burned in Paris and Rennes as the revolt that began in the capital last week swept through more than 700 schools nationwide.
'Sliding into riot and urban violence'
Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin didn't mince words, warning the movement had "gone from high-school student demonstrations to a public order disturbance."
Nuñez was even blunter. "We are sliding into riot and urban violence, and we are using all intermediate means to put an end to it," he told TF1 television.
Of France's 3,700 schools, Darmanin said 735 were now affected "one way or another" by the violent protests.
Cop beaten in sickening attack
The violence turned sickening in Belfort, north-eastern France, where a 17-year-old was arrested on suspicion of attempted homicide after a police officer was targeted.
BBC Verify authenticated two graphic videos showing the officer, later identified by a minister, being chased down, knocked to the ground and repeatedly punched and kicked in the head by a gang of young men.
At least 65 staff members have been injured in the unrest, the education ministry said.
Petrol bombs, axes and fireworks seized
Police published photos of the arsenal seized from demonstrators, including petrol bombs, an axe and so-called mortar fireworks.
"Significant damage" had been done to school facilities after attacks on gates, entrances and fences, the education ministry said.
Nelson Mandela high school in Nantes suffered more than €2 million ($3.3 million) in damage after fire destroyed its glass entrance and parts of the building inside.
'The people in front of me were not my students'
Education Minister Édouard Geffray said the movement had been hijacked by outsiders, telling BFMTV that teachers had told him "the people in front of me were not my students."
In the Paris suburb of Pantin, police charged at protesters and made arrests after projectiles were hurled at officers. In Strasbourg, tear gas was deployed as police feared conditions would turn more hostile.
"As far as we're concerned, we've won, our school is closed this morning," Lola, a 16-year-old protester, told AFP. "It makes us even angrier, the police have no right to hit us or use tear gas on us."
Parents told to pay up
Darmanin warned that prosecutors had been asked to hold parents liable for damage caused by their children and "pay for repairs."
At the Claude Monet school in southern Paris, 53-year-old Anya was desperately searching for her son. "We banned him from coming. I hope he isn't here, but he did leave the house," she told AFP. "We're afraid the situation might escalate."
Macron's nightmare timing
The chaos couldn't come at a worse moment for President Emmanuel Macron, six months out from next year's presidential election.
Budget cuts that will slash education funding have infuriated the young protesters, who complain of school hours that are too long, classrooms that are too hot, and too many staff off work.
Major French unions, including SNEP-FSU, SNUEP-FSU and Solidaires, have thrown their weight behind the students. Solidaires declared: "Let's not let them fire on our children. Secondary school pupils have the freedom of assembly, association and demonstration."
The blockades and protests started last week before spreading to hundreds of schools across the country. With no sign of either side backing down, France braces for another night on the edge.
