France

Young people, at least a portion of them, are on the offensive, with mass protests spreading from Paris and Milan to Katmandu New Delhi and Sri Lanka. A generational war has begun, and its consequences, including for North America, could be devastating.

Although conditions differ by country, the spark behind these protests lies in both the real and the fitfully imagined: high housing prices, food inflation, lack of good jobs and failing education systems are not figments of their imaginations. At the same time, cries of poverty seem a bit overwrought for a generation that enjoys the most wealth in history and, in the West at least, their protest seems to stem from being raised to think they were special, only to find out that the world is not such a welcoming place.

The violence, looting and burning in France over the weekend of October 24th-25th was somewhat less intense and widespread than it had been on the previous weekend, but it was still significant. A demonstration comprising an estimated 400,000 people took place on the Saturday in Paris, confined to the south-eastern edge of the city, and this was followed by violent clashes with police near Porte de Vincennes, about a 45-minute walk from the Place de la Bastille. Water cannon and tear gas were used. Around 500 rioters were estimated to have broken off from the main protest. There were more clashes, as well as bin fires and looting in Marseille, Lyon, Bordeaux, Lille, Toulouse, Nantes, Grenoble, Rennes and several other parts of France. There were around 1,000 arrests nationwide (1,300 by some reports), with 70,000 police having been deployed to the streets, which was a substantial increase on the previous weekend’s deployment. Activists have called for further action on October 31st, and it’s clear that the sentiment behind the unrest hasn’t gone away. The weather on the 31st is forecast to be mild and dry, more similar to that of the 17th than the wetter, colder 24th, so it remains to be seen how much the tensions have been defused, and to what extent the less dedicated were put off by the weather.

In 1811, Joseph de Maistre, a French philosopher who detested the French Revolution, famously said: “People get the government they deserve.”

In light of recent events in France and elsewhere, however, something else comes to mind: Do people get the riots they deserve, too? Maybe — sometimes.

Amid all the leftist and Muslim rioting in France, the guardians of the old leftist order looked as if they were on the ropes. As the government and police seemed unable to stop the violence, France looked ever closer to becoming either an Islamic republic or electing Marine Le Pen president and fighting back strongly against Islamization. But then an incident unfolded that seemed tailor-made to the left’s narrative that the problem in French society (and Western societies in general) is really “right-wing extremists,” not Muslim or leftist rioters. There was just one problem: it exploded almost immediately. But will that stop Macron and his henchmen from exploiting it for all it’s worth, and then some? Almost certainly not.

For a few heady weeks, the unrest in France was the left-liberal commentariat’s favourite kind of story. Here, apparently, were idealistic teenagers rising up like in 1968 – though this time against crumbling classrooms and the cost of living. Then the town hall in Limoges went up in flames on 17 October, the looting began in earnest, and the riots spread to other European cities.

After a mass shooting took place, France’s President Macron delivered shocking and offensive remarks.

France had suffered devastating Islamic terrorist attacks targeting Christians and Jews, and non-Muslims in general, some of the most notorious being the Bataclan massacre, the murder of a priest in a Catholic Church as well as the deliberate murder of children at the Ozar HaTorah school.

“The Irish say they are not Greece. The Portuguese say they are not Irish. The Spanish finance minister said last week that Spain is not Portugal.” I wrote these words in the Financial Times over 15 years ago, as the eurozone sovereign-debt crisis raged. Fast forward to today, and the big news is that Belgians are not French. Expect, soon enough, to hear that Italians are not Belgian. With all eyes currently on France, on the violence, the protests, and the rising possibility of a genuine financial crisis, the key question now is how such a crisis might spread.

Another day in France, another minor revealed to me the victim of forced prostitution.

Five men are facing trial at the Rhône Assize Court from Oct. 26 to Nov. 2 on charges of aggravated pimping involving a 12-year-old girl, referred to by the pseudonym Louna. While the suspects are being prosecuted, none of her clients face charges.

It was a peaceful weekend in France apparently. One broadcaster described the latest protests as “calm” and Le Monde said they unfolded “without serious incident.” Tell that to the 53 police officers who were injured in clashes with demonstrators, 1,513 of whom were arrested as trouble broke out across the country. Laurent Nunez, the Interior Minister, said that in several towns and cities the police had been subjected to an “extremely high level of violence.”

If you listen to its savants and politicians, you’d think that France was unravelling, on the brink of a civil war. Is it? Well, yes.

French President Emmanuel Macron called out 70,000 police this weekend after another week of not-so-relatively peaceful riots. (The U.S. is about 18 times larger than France so the deployment is more than substantial.) He said, “The rules are simple, and I think they’re just common sense,” Macron added. “The general recommendation is that there should be no demonstrations in the coming days.” Seriously?

Given its corpulent government and inexplicably entitled populace, I’ve long been in awe of the fact that France functions at all. In the past four weeks, the verdict is belatedly in: it doesn’t.

Early estimates of the riots: 1,500 shops damaged, destroyed and/or looted; 1,000 police officers injured; at least 1,800 arrests; innumerable cars burned; multiple architecturally irreplaceable public buildings set alight or vandalised.

Two versions of the ‘unrest’ have emerged. For the left-wing press, ‘mostly peaceful’ minors protesting poor educational provision were joined by ‘mostly peaceful’ adults protesting the cost of living – who were then infiltrated by masked outside ‘agitators’ of totally unknown identity who looted and set stuff on fire.

Epic moment. France: 5 patriots vs 100 Antifa and immigrants who burn and destroy everything. They did not back down an inch —they fought like lions. Then the police intervene to defend them. This is France waking up. They are heroes. https://t.co/sk1goEHq6d

— RadioGenoa (@RadioGenoa) October 25, 2026

More than 1,300 arrests were made as hundreds of thousands of people took part in another day of protests across France on Saturday that were followed by some clashes later in the day, officials have said.

After largely peaceful demonstrations, police fired tear gas and water cannon to disperse protesters in a number of cities including Paris, while barricades were set alight in Marseille and people ripped boards from a shop in Bordeaux.

Officials have so far managed to avoid rioting and looting on the scale seen last weekend, which resulted in some of the worst scenes of disorder in France’s modern history.

French woman tells the truth about the riots Happening in France. 👇🏻👇🏻👇🏻👇🏻👇🏻👇🏻👇🏻👇🏻👇🏻👇🏻 https://t.co/9SAvEya1Zf

— 🇺🇸🇺🇸 MissyMiss🇺🇸🇺🇸 (@MissyE2024) October 25, 2026

🚨 France Opened Its Doors. Now Its Conquerors Are Mocking Them – America, Listen Up!

Watch these men beat their chests under the Eiffel Tower – France’s greatest symbol of civilization reduced to a stage for Islamic dominance. This is not culture. This is conquest made visible.

France got the low-level Islamic foot soldiers. The street muscle. The rioters. The ones who fill the banlieues, torch cars, enforce parallel rules, and simultaneously bankrupt the welfare state.

Generations of them. From a handful of mosques in 1975 to over 2,600 today. Arab-Muslim first names among newborns rising from under 1% to over 25%. Marseille 30–40%. Roubaix 35–40%. Seine-Saint-Denis 30–40%+ with whole communes already majority. Native French minorities in their own maternity wards.

The 2021 generals warned of “Islamism and the hordes of the banlieue” and civil war if nothing changed. They were mocked. The 2025 intelligence report confirmed the Brotherhood’s 139 linked mosques and 280 front groups building the infrastructure. France invited the numbers and is now living with the results.

America got something more dangerous.

We imported the sophisticated leadership. The doctors, the lawyers, the engineers, the professionals. The ones who arrive with credentials, set up the organizations, and execute a deliberate plan.

Each group has a purpose: CAIR and its affiliates for politics and lawfare. Muslim Student Associations for campuses. Islamic schools and mosques for the next generation. Charity and “community” networks that double as parallel societies.

They push Islam into every sector – government, schools, media, corporations, law, medical, sports, city councils – while simultaneously building mini-Islamic states where, from birth to death, you never have to deal with a non-Muslim. Arabic on the signs. Sharia norms in the neighborhoods. Halal everything. Parallel courts, parallel finance, parallel education. Funded by the same Gulf money that bankrolls Europe’s problems.

In America, they are quieter, more professional, and far more effective than street riots.

France got the poor foot soldiers who overwhelm the streets and the budget. We got the officers/leaders who seize the institutions and build the enclaves. Same ideology. Same end goal. Different delivery system.

The Eiffel Tower video is another Islamic flex/warning. France is further along. We are on the same path, only with better-organized operators who treat every election as jihad and every school board as territory.

America – the 2026 midterms on November 3 are the last clean chance to interrupt this.

They vote as a disciplined bloc. They turn out at 80–93% while most of us stay home. They win razor-thin local races that lock in the parallel systems. Once the numbers and the institutions tip, you do not get the country back.

Show up. Vote early. Vote Republican. Bring everyone you know. Treat every race like the future depends on it – because France already proved it does.

France opened the door and surrendered its future. America is following their lead, and more of our politicians do not even realize it

— Amy Mek (@AmyMek) October 25, 2026

Violence erupted across France today as more than 400,000 people took part in mass protests against President Emmanuel Macron’s embattled government.

Tear gas, baton charges and water canons were used by riot police for the second weekend in a row as protests took place in Paris, Bordeaux, Nantes, Rennes and Marseille on a Saturday described as ‘the longest day’ by law and order officials.

The unrest came just days after thousands were arrested and demonstrations turned violent across the country last Saturday.

Paris right now. The police use water cannons and tear gas to disperse the far-left crowd.

The UK should authorise the use of water cannons because this is satisfying to watch. https://t.co/3ueHWUQ8Vz

— Chris Rose (@ArchRose90) October 24, 2026

Looks like the French police were finally ordered to do their jobs. https://t.co/SUHnKTYntT

— Moshe (@IsraelIDFend) October 24, 2026

Rioters set fire to a building in France. A neighbour begs them: "Please, there are kids in that building!"

Their answer: "We don’t give a fuck! We’re young, we want our rights!" https://t.co/j1uRYDk62A

— Drew Pavlou 🇦🇺🇺🇸🇫🇷🇺🇦🇹🇼 (@DrewPavlou) October 24, 2026

h/t PA CAT