Macron Lashes Out at Trump and Foreign Leaders Over 'Stupid' Comments on France's Unrest

In Doha, standing before reporters during a trip to Qatar, Emmanuel Macron was asked a direct question: was he talking about Donald Trump when he complained of foreign leaders making "stupid comments" about the unrest in France? His answer was two words. "Among others."

The French president had not named anyone in his opening remarks. He said that "manipulation of information" after Saturday's riots had produced comments "as unacceptable as they are stupid, from many people, including foreign leaders." Some of those leaders, he said, were in the middle of election campaigns, "whether here in the region or on the other side of the Atlantic," and were naively spreading narratives that certain circles are clearly trying to promote. They were using France for their own campaigns, he said. "We already have difficulties to deal with."

Trump has blamed the violence on "migrants, jihadists and communists" as he campaigns for his Republican party ahead of the midterm elections. Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, who faces elections next weekend, has said France suffered an "invasion of extremist Islam." Macron said AI-generated images were circulating that showed scenes that never happened in France, and that claims of invasion by hordes of migrants and Islamists were completely false. Analysts have dismissed the idea that migrants were the main factor in the protests.

What actually happened on Saturday began as largely peaceful demonstrations over the cost of living. They rapidly turned into violence and extensive looting, above all in Paris, Marseille, Lyon and Limoges, where the town hall was set on fire and partly destroyed. The government has admitted it "lost control." The crisis comes six months before presidential elections to choose Macron's successor.

The human and legal toll is now coming into focus. Justice minister Gérald Darmanin said on Wednesday that 2,500 people had been taken into custody during and after the protests. Of those, 174 have been jailed and another 917 formally prosecuted. Partial night-time curfews on Monday and Tuesday in areas prone to violence and looting, including Paris, Marseille and Lille, have helped bring relative calm, and were expected to be renewed on Wednesday.

The economic effects are visible too. Several countries have issued travel warnings for France. The yield on the government's benchmark 10-year bonds passed 5% on Wednesday, its highest since 2002, in markets already nervous. Macron is in the Gulf seeking energy deals to help offset rising fuel costs.

The next test is Saturday. The gilets jaunes (yellow vest) movement has formally filed plans for a march through central Paris, aiming to revive its 2018 nationwide campaign against rising living costs and declining public services. Student groups have called their own protests that day, pressing for more investment in education. Police will ban protests from 8am to 8pm on Thursday in parts of Paris, including around the Elysee palace, both houses of parliament, the Louvre, the Champs-Elysees, the Bastille and République squares, and the Châtelet-Les Halles shopping area, which looters heavily targeted at the weekend.

Macron promised that those wanting to cause disorder in city centres next Saturday "will be prevented from doing so," adding, "There must be no wavering at the top of the state." Ministers have promised a "massive" reinforced security operation after acknowledging shortcomings in their first response, with some troops expected alongside extra police. Macron insisted France "doesn't need a state of emergency" and "has the means" to control further unrest.

The unions are pushing a different line. Sophie Binet, head of the CGT, said the anger is "huge and legitimate" and that the answer "is not repression. It is a political response." Unions met prime minister Sébastien Lecornu on Wednesday, but no concrete announcements followed, and the main unions have called a nationwide mobilisation for 5 November. Elsewhere, sometimes violent protests in Italy and Belgium have fed concern that anger over living standards could spread across a continent with widespread budget problems. Italy's government has ordered 500 troops to Milan to stem street violence there.