French President Emmanuel Macron, facing mounting political pressure, on Sunday attributed part of the unrest and looting sweeping the country to the impact of the U.S. war against Iran’s regime.
Macron’s reference to the conflict during a televised address drew criticism from several experts. He said protesters had raised concerns about the cost of living and fuel prices, both of which he linked to fighting in the Persian Gulf. France, he noted, had not taken part in the conflict but was nonetheless experiencing its economic consequences.
“I fully understand their concern,” Macron said, adding that similar worries had emerged in other European capitals. He said he had launched several international initiatives aimed at securing fuel and gas supplies and stabilizing energy markets. Macron also announced plans to visit three Gulf countries to discuss the energy crisis.
Demonstrations over the rising cost of living brought together students, climate activists, former “Yellow Vests” and farmers ahead of the presidential election. Organizers estimated that 200,000 people joined protests across France, including 40,000 in Paris on October 17, 2026. (Kiran RIDLEY / AFP via Getty Images)
It remains unclear which protesters Macron was referring to when he cited concerns about fuel prices. News Media reported Monday on the forces behind the widespread riots, including groups that have called for the abolition of the free-enterprise system.
Macron vowed that anyone who had attempted “to bring down the republic” would be held responsible.
President Donald Trump told reporters Monday that he had warned Macron during their first meeting to shut France’s borders. “You’re going to ruin your country,” Trump recalled telling him. “And they’ve ruined their country. It’s going to be hard to get it back. But hopefully France will come back.”
A French Foreign Ministry spokesman directed News Media to Macron’s televised address and referred additional questions to the Elysée press office. The office had not responded by the time of publication.
Lisa Daftari, an Iran expert, disputed Macron’s explanation for the fuel crisis. She told News Media that energy prices had surged after Iran’s regime closed the Strait of Hormuz and held a significant portion of the world’s energy supply hostage. Daftari also questioned whether fuel costs and student concerns fully explained the unrest, pointing to fires at major infrastructure and landmarks, widespread looting and the arrest of nearly 2,400 people in a single day.
Daftari, the Foreign Desk editor-in-chief, said the scale of the violence went far beyond a conventional protest over diesel prices. In her view, the unrest amounted to organized lawlessness, a characterization she said was supported by the French government’s decision to blame ultra-left groups and criminals. “France has a domestic crisis,” she said, “and current geopolitics are not the alibi for it.”
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Protesters moved through central Paris amid clashes, fires and a heavy police presence during nationwide demonstrations over the rising cost of living. Paris, France, Oct. 17, 2026. (Firas Abdullah/Anadolu via Getty Images)
French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu accused the “ultra-left movement” of organizing widespread disorder in the run-up to the presidential election.
Barak Seener, an associate research fellow at London’s Henry Jackson Society, told News Media that illegal immigration from the Middle East, North Africa, sub-Saharan Africa, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh had been used by some movements as a means of challenging Western societies. He also argued that slogans such as “globalize the intifada,” “Free Gaza” and “Stop the genocide” were being used to advance efforts to undermine Western civilization and impose Sharia law. Seener said Macron continued to ignore that possibility.
People gathered at Place de la République in Paris to survey the aftermath of a national mobilization day against the high cost of living. The October 17 demonstrations were marked by severe violence, looting and vandalism. Paris, France, Oct. 18, 2026. (Laurent Caron / Hans Lucas / AFP via Getty Images)
Vice President JD Vance also criticized France’s immigration policies in a social media post. Writing on X, Vance said Western liberals had “imported the third world into France and other countries in the name of diversity and compassion.”
“They ignored fundamental questions of assimilation and compatibility,” Vance added. “They were told it would lead to this and they didn’t listen.”
Seener said France’s political establishment was now facing the consequences of what he described as political correctness and unconditional support for Palestinian statehood. He also criticized Macron’s remarks at the 81st United Nations General Assembly, where the French president declared that Hamas “has never been active” in the West Bank. Seener accused Macron of reshaping events to serve his political agenda.
Seener, who has written extensively on Iran, said Macron had directed blame toward students, teachers, trade unions, lawmakers and business leaders, as well as rising oil prices linked to the U.S.-led war against Iran. Seener argued that explanation did not account for the unrest. He further pointed to what he called a “Red-Green alliance,” citing 38 left-wing and Muslim organizations and 16 student groups—including communist youth organizations and the Muslim Students of France—as contributors to the riots across France.