France: Nearly 1,000 arrested after protests and clashes in several cities

Protests against the rising cost of living spread to cities across France on Saturday. Authorities deployed large numbers of police officers to prevent a repeat of the violence seen the previous weekend. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said nearly 1,000 people were arrested nationwide, according to AFP. He said police faced an exceptionally high level of violence from people dressed in black with links to extremist groups. Nunez said marches in most cities ended without major incidents, but far-left groups threw objects and fireworks at officers, triggering clashes.