Macron blames ‘seditious’ far left for unrest as France bans some protests

French authorities banned Thursday’s demonstrations in several major cities, including Paris, Lyon, Lille and Grenoble. In Paris, protests are prohibited until 8pm in areas near the Elysee Palace, parliament, major train stations and districts hit by looting. Emmanuel Macron blamed Saturday’s riots—which followed a protest of more than 500,000 people and led to at least 2,500 arrests—on what he called “seditious acts” by ultra-left groups. He said France would ban “illegitimate” protests in the coming days and require approved demonstrations to take routes outside city centres.