DOMINANT ANGLE
Belgrade is primarily concerned with the escalation of violence: the Serbian press details fires, assaults, and clashes with police around French high schools, more than the students' demands.
Dominant angle identified — does not reflect unanimity of this country’s media
KEY POINTS
- 01
According to Laurent Nuñez, as quoted by Politika, 625 people were arrested and 199 injured, including 83 police officers.
- 02
Blic, citing Reuters, reports fires in at least two high schools, including Nelson Mandela in Nantes, and the assault of a principal in Marseille.
- 03
Mélenchon rejects Macron's accusation that LFI is fanning the unrest, while Philippe Baptiste accuses the party of encouraging violence.
ANALYSIS
Belgrade, October 2, 2026. Serbian dailies Politika and Blic are covering the French high school mobilization from the angle of the deterioration of public order, relying on dispatches from Tanjug and Reuters.
Politika, from Paris, reports on the statements of Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez: more than 600 people were arrested during the blockages of high schools, precisely 625 arrests, and 199 injured, including 83 police officers. The minister condemns the "targeting of police, throwing of projectiles and violence", as well as "urban violence", while ensuring that the police intervened with "a great deal of restraint" and used proportionate weapons such as tear gas. The newspaper specifies that investigations have been opened into injured students.
The newspaper also relays the political quarrel. Citing Le Figaro, it writes that the movement is fueled by members of La France insoumise and supported by students. Jean-Luc Mélenchon denied Emmanuel Macron's accusations that his party is fanning the troubles. Higher Education Minister Philippe Baptiste accuses LFI of encouraging violence, and Macron claims that political leaders should not join the protesters to "spread fear". Politika also notes a strike by civil servants against budget cuts, around ten percent of Parisian high schools blocked, especially in Saint-Denis, and containers set on fire in Lille.
Blic adopts a more dramatic tone, headlining with "horrific details". According to Reuters, the situation "dramatically escalated" on Thursday: fires were set in at least two high schools, including the Nelson Mandela high school in Nantes, which was evacuated without any injuries, according to a deputy mayor. In Marseille, hundreds of young people allegedly surrounded a fire truck and set it on fire, and, according to the prosecutor's office, a principal was splashed with gasoline and beaten. Their health status is unknown.
The causes of the anger, lack of teachers and dilapidated buildings, are only briefly mentioned in the introduction to Blic's article. Neither of the two texts mentions the closure of more than 400 establishments, nor the emergency meeting of the Prime Minister.
