French protest groups and unions called on Sunday (October 26, 2026) for further demonstrations as they sought to maintain pressure on the government after a huge security operation helped to contain unrest during nationwide rallies on Saturday (October 25, 2026) .
In Albania, peaceful protests that began at the end of May this month turned into violent unrest and skirmishes have taken place in several Italian cities for a second week running. The Interior Ministry said 410,000 people took part in Saturday’s marches as authorities deployed 70,000 police, helping to avert a repeat of the looting and vandalism that swept many cities on October 17. A protester throws a teargas canister to police after a demonstration against rising living costs in Rennes, France, Saturday, October 24, 2026. | Photo Credit: AP The government has begun talks with unions and student representatives to try to defuse the crisis, but protest leaders say the measures it has proposed so far are inadequate. Police unions said on Sunday (October 25, 2026) they did not have enough staff to maintain for any length of time the high level of deployment that on Saturday helped to limit disorder to sporadic clashes in a number of cities, including Paris and Marseille. Some 1,314 people were arrested on Saturday, half of last week’s numbers, the Interior Ministry said on Sunday, and about 50 police were injured, compared with more than 1,000 last week. On Saturday (October 24) Belgian police used tear gas and pepper spray as they clashed in Brussels with anti-government demonstrators.
