Paris: France has suspended the use of stun grenades by police at student-led demonstrations, Interior Minister Laurent Nunez announced Wednesday, as allegations of police misconduct escalate following nationwide protests.

The movement—sparked by demands for better high school conditions—has led to more than 6,500 arrests, mostly of minors, alongside hundreds of injuries among students, law enforcement, and school staff.

The decision follows an incident on Monday where a 15-year-old student lost a hand after police fired a stun grenade.

"I am suspending their use in the high school student protests until the facts of the incident have been clarified," Nunez told radio broadcaster RTL early Wednesday. He emphasised that the suspension applies "only for the high school student protests" and for "just long enough to understand what happened."

This comes after a 14-year-old student in northwest Paris lost several teeth last week after being hit in the face by a tear gas grenade fired at close range. A police officer was charged over the incident on Tuesday. According to Nunez, law enforcement authorities have launched 18 internal investigations into alleged police misconduct since the demonstrations began.

Emergency government action & political backlash

Following a national day of mobilisation on Tuesday—which saw 250,000 people take to the streets across France, 488 arrests, and 43 officers injured—President Emmanuel Macron held an emergency meeting with Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu and key cabinet ministers.

Prime Minister Lecornu sought to reassure students in a post on X, writing that "the voice of high school students is precious and must be heard," promising it would inform "a concrete action plan."

Lecornu announced a half-day pause in classes on Wednesday to allow students and staff to voice their grievances. However, student union leader Ryad Rani dismissed the gesture as "yet another attempt to muzzle the debate" and buy time. Nicolas Bonnet, union representative for school principals, told franceinfo that "to get out of this crisis, we will need something more than simple consultation periods."

The government's actions have drawn sharp political fire across the spectrum ahead of a tense 2027 presidential election:

  • Manuel Bompard, national coordinator for the hard-left France Unbowed (LFI), criticized the delay: "It took several children being maimed for life for Nunez to give up using grenades against high school students."

  • Marine Le Pen, far-right leader, accused Macron of being "always on the side of attacking the police."

Claims of custody abuse & ongoing disruption

Protests originally broke out in late September over dilapidated school facilities and acute teacher shortages. While most schools reopened Wednesday, more than 500 remained partially or fully blocked by barricades of trash bins.

Lawyers representing detained teenagers reported widespread mistreatment during arrests and in custody.

Ainoha Pascual, a lawyer representing three Paris minors, described her clients as "terrorised," adding that "a very large majority arrive in custody injured," having suffered baton strikes or being dragged along the ground.

Prisca Ancion of the Collective for Judicial Action told AFP that every arrested student reported experiencing "an insult, a slap, having their head held down on the ground, chokeholds."

Despite government efforts to defuse tensions, several major national education unions have called for a fresh wave of strikes and demonstrations on Thursday. (AFP)