Irish student and French residents describe tear-gas chaos and Limoges town-hall fire amid nationwide protests
Irish graduate student in Paris recounts fleeing tear-gas during Saturday protests, while a businessman from Limoges describes the aftermath of a town-hall blaze sparked by rioters.
Clara Conyngham, a 23-year-old Irish student at the École Normale Supérieure, joined a Saturday march in Paris that combined student demonstrators with the revived Yellow Vests, farmers, climate activists and trade unionists. She described how riot police advanced with batons and tear-gas canisters, forcing her to run through the gas to escape, while fellow protesters and street medics helped treat affected participants.
Meanwhile in Limoges, Peter Durkan, a 40-year-old entrepreneur, returned from a basketball tournament with his daughter and saw traffic halted as rioters overturned a police car and set fire to the 1883 town hall, whose spire later collapsed. Durkan noted the building’s personal significance and the lingering smell of smoke after the blaze. Local police said they had exhausted their tear-gas supplies and were overwhelmed. Observers said the violence reflected a mix of politically motivated individuals and opportunistic looters reacting to high fuel prices and broader frustration with the government.
Why it matters
The story shows how French protests over education and living costs are spilling into violence and affecting historic sites across the country.
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