French school pupils whose demonstrations have contributed to a wave of unrest across the country have faced an unexpected retreat after parents arrived to take them away.
France has endured weeks of protests, disorder and violence linked to worsening conditions in schools, with riot police confronting crowds numbering in the hundreds of thousands in towns and cities nationwide.
In tense scenes, officers wearing protective armour pushed back masked protesters while avoiding stones and rocks thrown through the air. Police also used tear gas and pepper spray in efforts to break up the crowds.
Yet although some students appear increasingly willing to challenge the authorities, footage suggests many remain wary of another force: their parents.
Several videos show angry mothers and fathers confronting their children at the demonstrations before escorting them away from the unrest.
One video shows a furious mother climbing out of her car and running towards her son as smoke rises behind him.
She seizes the boy with one hand and strikes him on the back with the other while directing him towards the vehicle. Despite being noticeably taller than his mother, the child is eventually bundled into the car.
In another clip, a mother grips her protesting daughter by her clothing and pulls her through a crowd gathered around a school blockade.
The girl initially refuses to move, standing her ground as she resists. She eventually follows after locking eyes with her visibly angry parent.
A furious mother runs from her car to collect her son from the unrest
A father was filmed quietly leading his son away from the student protest, guiding him by the back of the neck. The caption read: ‘A fair-haired, white father is coming to pick up his son’
A mother grips her disgruntled daughter’s clothing and pulls her through a crowd at a school blockade
Elsewhere, another father was filmed removing his son from the demonstration, calmly guiding him away by the back of the neck.
Screaming can be heard as police block the road ahead in the footage, which carries the caption: ‘a fair-haired, white father is coming to pick up his son’.
France’s interior ministry estimated that around 256,000 people took part in protests across the country yesterday, with students joining forces with members of the nation’s influential trade unions.
FIND OUT MORE: Migrants Wanted for Slashing NYPD Detective Found in Massachusetts
Among those taking part was the far-Left mayor of Saint-Denis, a deprived suburb north of Paris. The mayor faced intense scrutiny after publicly supporting student protesters and appearing at the front of the march.
The mayor, a member of the La France Insoumise (LFI) party, had already drawn criticism the previous week after saying: ‘Violence can become legitimate at a certain point.’
Authorities said 488 people were arrested during the day, while classes were fully or partially halted at 891 of France’s 3,700 lycees.
The confrontations have also been accompanied by a series of disturbing incidents, including one in which a 15-year-old demonstrator reportedly lost a hand after a stun grenade exploded.
With accusations of police brutality continuing to grow, officials announced today that stun grenades would no longer be fired at student protesters.
Police spray CS gas as they clash with students on Boulevard Saint-Germain during a protest outside Sciences Po on Wednesday
But Sebastien Lecornu, France’s prime minister, rejected accusations of ‘police repression’ during a tense parliamentary session on Tuesday where he accused the leader of LFI Jean-Luc Melenchon of intentionally fuelling unrest.
This comes as officials announced one police officer has been charged over a separate incident where a 14-year-old student was struck in the face by a tear-gas grenade launched at close range. He lost several teeth.
Meanwhile, a 15-year-old boy had been arrested on Monday for allegedly taking part in a gang attack on a policewoman in Paris.
Students have been protesting failing school conditions for weeks. But discontent boiled over last week into violent clashes with police across hundreds of campuses.
Protesters walked out complaining of missing teachers, overloaded timetables, dilapidated classrooms and buildings that cannot cope with rising temperatures.
The demonstrations quickly turned into pupils lighting dustbin fires, torching bus shelters and clashing with riot police, who have in turn responded with batons, tear gas and riot-control rounds.
The government ordered schools to halt lesson time until Friday for ‘internal democracy’.
But student unions remain doubtful and have called for blockades to continue until Wednesday. An ‘Act IV’ of nationwide protests has also been ordered on Thursday.
READ MORE: Student union warns France riots ‘WILL intensify’ if they are ‘not listened to’ despite days of violent clashes and 256,000 taking to the streets on Tuesday alone