French budget cut strikes turn violent as protesters and police clash in Paris

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French budget cut strikes turn violent as protesters and police clash in Paris  France faces nationwide disruption as hundreds of thousands protest against new austerity measures on Thursday. Major unions called for action, with significant impacts on transport and schools.  READ MORE : http://www.euronews.com/2025/09/18/france-wakes-up-to-massive-protests-and-strikes-against-budget-cuts  Subscribe to our channel. Euronews is available on Dailymotion in 12 languages

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00:01French budget cut strikes turned violent in Paris on Thursday afternoon

00:05with hundreds of thousands of people joining strikes and demonstrations.

00:09Protesters join trade unions holding a day of strike action

00:13to pressure the country's new Prime Minister, Sébastien Le Corneau,

00:17to rethink a package of budget cuts and take action on wages, pension and public services.

00:24We have a government who doesn't listen to us and does the opposite of what the population needs.

00:31A government who is fleeing its citizens, a government who greatly reprime its population.

00:39It is important that everyone is mobilising for the French population who wants to be dignified

00:44and who wants to bring to others their dignity.

00:47Le Corneau quickly walked back an unpopular proposal to scrap two public holidays.

00:55However, trade unions have raised concern that other elements of the plan,

00:58including a welfare spending freeze, would be maintained.

01:02France is witnessing one of its largest protest movements in years

01:08as hundreds of thousands of protesters took to the streets of the country

01:14against the government's announced austerity measures.

01:18Across the country, strikes and protests disrupted transport, schools and even hospitals.

01:25By the end of the day, the mood had shifted here in Paris.

01:29What began as a largely peaceful protest ended with quite a few intense clashes.

01:36A few dozen individuals dressed in black hurled projectiles at police,

01:42some of them even striking other demonstrators and journalists.

01:47Police responded with several charges and heavy use of tear gas and stun grenades

01:53to try to disperse the crowd.

01:55The Interior Ministry said that about half a million people demonstrated nationwide,

02:02a figure far lower than the more than one million protestors announced by France's trade unions.

02:10Of course, the

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