Mass protests over decrepit conditions at French high schools descended into sporadic violence on Tuesday, leading to nearly 500 arrests and prompting President Emmanuel Macron to call an emergency meeting.

The protests started in late September with students blocking entrances to hundreds of high schools for 15- to 17-year-olds over complaints of dilapidated facilities and teacher shortages.

US President Donald Trump weighed in on Tuesday to blame the unrest in France on "mass migration" and Islam, as he pushed his global right-wing narrative ahead of tough midterm elections at home.

In France, parents, teachers and union workers joined the high school students' movement in the capital Paris and other cities.

The interior ministry said 256,000 people protested nationwide, while union organisers put the figure at 450,000.

At least 488 people were arrested and 43 members of the security forces were wounded on Tuesday, the interior ministry announced.

Rights groups, unions and the students have accused authorities of using disproportionate force.

A teenager lost a hand on Monday after police fired a sting-ball grenade.

A 14-year-old student in northwest Paris was hit in the face with a tear gas grenade at such close range that he lost several teeth. A policeman was charged on Tuesday over that incident.

"Gen Z has risen up and wants to be heard," 19-year-old Lilia said at a massive march in central Paris, adding she hoped Macron would listen.

At Paris's Place de la Republique, protesters gathered beneath banners demanding better-funded schools, including one reading "Neglected schools, sacrificed youth."

A reporter described the Paris march as largely peaceful, but tensions flared near its endpoint in the east of the capital as police fired tear gas and some demonstrators threw rocks at a line of officers carrying riot shields.

Police officials said that "300 hostile individuals" attempted to confront officers.

The unrest comes ahead of a 2027 election to choose Macron's successor, with far-right candidate Marine Le Pen riding high in the polls despite a graft conviction.

While many protests have been peaceful, some demonstrators have started fires, destroyed bus shelters or clashed with riot police.

Police have responded with batons, tear gas and riot-control rounds.

Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu condemned violence linked to the protests, telling lawmakers the violence would not be tolerated.

"Burning down a high school does not improve the state of high school buildings," he told parliament, rejecting accusations that the government had ordered "police repression" against protesters.

He also said that high schools across the country would be closed for a half-day between Wednesday and Friday, to permit "internal democracy" in the establishments.

The government says 215 students and 715 police officers have been injured since the start of the movement.

The government has sought to address the students' grievances, while accusing the hard-left France Unbowed (LFI) party of encouraging the movement.

Veteran LFI presidential candidate Jean-Luc Melenchon has strongly supported the protests, while calling for non-violent methods.

Since the start of the movement, 24 schools have been burned or ransacked, according to the education ministry.

More than 6,500 people, mostly minors, have been arrested. The prime minister's office said 85 teaching staff have also been injured. (AFP)



Edited by Cecil Wong