France braces for more student protests as hundreds of schools close

More than 400 schools across France will be fully or partly closed on Monday as authorities prepare for another week of widespread student protests.

Education Minister Édouard Geffray said between 400 and 500 schools would suspend some or all lessons because security conditions “have not been fulfilled”, The Guardian reported.

The closures follow days of demonstrations by thousands of teenagers protesting what they describe as underfunding and neglect of France’s education system.

Students have raised concerns about overcrowded classrooms, deteriorating buildings, teacher shortages and long school days.

Geffray said 24 schools had been burned or ransacked and 78 education staff members injured during the unrest.

Clashes between protesters and riot police have left hundreds injured and resulted in more than 5,000 arrests, most involving minors.

Protest organisers have called for fresh demonstrations on Tuesday, saying the government has failed to introduce “concrete measures” to address their concerns.

Authorities have accused political activists of exploiting the student movement.

“There are activists – particularly from the far left – who have infiltrated the high school student movement, hijacked it from the students themselves, and engaged in extreme violence,” Geffray said.

The government has acknowledged students’ concerns but condemned what it described as “urban violence”.