Student-led protests over school conditions continued across France after more than 250,000 people demonstrated nationwide, PBS NewsHour reported, following demonstrations that began in mid-September.
Students have cited overcrowded classrooms, staffing shortages and poor building conditions. The BBC reported that protesters have blocked access to many high schools and that hundreds of students, teachers and police officers have been injured in some clashes. PBS said nearly 500 people were arrested Tuesday, bringing its total since the protests began to more than 6,000; Al Jazeera reported more than 6,100 arrests.
Al Jazeera said the protests started September 21 with a school blockade in the Paris suburb of Creteil and expanded nationally within a week. It also reported that teachers joined a September 29 public-sector strike opposing a proposed pay freeze. Demonstrations were continuing, according to PBS.