Portugal

Lisbon, October 18, 2026. The Portuguese press is following Sunday evening, October 18, from the perspective of public order. L'Observador, SAPO, RTP, and Jornal Económico first report on the balance of Saturday, October 17: approximately 1,800 arrests, according to L'Observador and Jornal Económico, including 855 in Paris, a "record number" according to the police, and more than 500 police officers, gendarmes, and firefighters injured, according to Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez. The balance remains provisional, he warns. More than 500 people were still in custody, including 171 minors.

Jornal Económico and RTP estimate the mobilization at 550,000 people, according to the Interior Ministry, and more than 800,000, according to the organizers. The violence would have affected 1,500 businesses and cost "hundreds of millions of euros." SAPO focuses on Limoges: the town hall, a building from 1883, is "practically destroyed" after a fire, and Mayor Maurice Barate speaks of a "catastrophe for heritage."

Regarding the speech itself, SAPO emphasizes Emmanuel Macron's phrase: the demands are "legitimate," but he will be "inflexible" with those who "destroy and pillage." The president denounced "elements of radical left-wing groups, joined by many criminals" and stated: "We all feel anger and shame tonight." He promised that looters will have to compensate for the damage and that those who wanted to "overthrow the Republic" will be held responsible. He assured business owners that they will "not be alone": Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu will chair a crisis unit, initially scheduled for Sunday, then postponed to Monday, October 19, in the morning, according to Le Monde, cited by L'Observador.

L'Observador radio's 9 pm bulletin, an automatic transcription, gives a heavier toll, of approximately 2,300 arrests and nearly a thousand injured agents, seven seriously.

The international dimension involves Donald Trump. On Truth Social, he writes that "France is burning" and attributes the troubles to immigration: "Close the borders and take back control, before it's too late!" RTP and Jornal Económico reiterate this message without commentary.

One case remains on the sidelines: a 17-year-old lost a hand in Saint-Étienne, hit by a police tear gas grenade; the gendarmerie and police inspections have been seized. The articles consulted do not detail the criticisms of the opposition or the unions.