France to deploy army alongside police to control Saturday's protests

The French government has decided to deploy the army along with police to prevent violence and looting during Saturday's planned protests.

Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu acknowledged shortcomings in previous security arrangements and said tighter measures would be in place this time. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez also said the security strategy would change, having learned lessons from earlier incidents.

Student organizations and 'Yellow Vest' groups have announced they will continue their movement against rising prices, fuel price hikes and budget shortages in public services.

The movement began on September 21 in Créteil, a suburb of Paris, when students at a secondary school protested against dilapidated buildings, a shortage of teachers and inconvenient class schedules.

An estimated 500,000 to 800,000 protesters are currently on the streets in cities and towns across the country, most of them students. The city hall in Limoges and the historic tourism office in Lyon have been destroyed, while hundreds of shops have been looted.

The movement has caused major losses to businesses and increased pressure on the economy. National Assembly President Yael Braun-Pivet has proposed a parliamentary inquiry into how the riots were planned.