TNIE online desk
France has witnessed nationwide student protests, with thousands arrested, hundreds injured and schools set on fire, intensifying the presidential election campaign.
The majority of protesters have been peaceful, but violence on the fringes is having an impact, with a daily menu of fireworks thrown at police and volleys of tear gas fired at high school pupils.
Demonstrations first erupted last month in a high school in Creteil southeast of Paris over a lack of staff. From there, class strikes, blockades and demonstrations spread across France.
Candidates seeking to succeed Macron in the presidential election have made the demonstrations a campaign issue, as the French president is constitutionally barred from serving a third consecutive term.
Riot police have liberally used tear gas and wielded their batons to disperse crowds. Police made more than 6,600 arrests nationwide as of last week.
French history partly explains why protests are veering into confrontations between riot police and some demonstrators who come ready to fight in masks and black clothes, says Walid Hrar, a police officer.