French President Emmanuel Macron has rejected Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez's resignation following widespread weekend rioting and looting across major cities, instructing him to remain in office to overhaul policing tactics, Macron's office said Monday.
Macron refused the resignation to maintain law enforcement command, directing Nuñez to ensure transparency regarding planning and intelligence failures and to swiftly deploy new ground tactics against mobile groups of troublemakers, looters, and far-left activists.
The unrest followed Saturday's nationwide protests over rising living costs and poor school conditions, resulting in Sunday arson and business looting across Paris, Lyon, Marseille, and other cities, with at least 2,400 arrests nationwide. In Limoges, a fire caused the roof of the 19th-century City Hall to collapse.
Speaking on France Inter radio, Nuñez took responsibility and admitted authorities "lost control" in several cities. Meanwhile, Marseille's prefect banned all protests from noon to 8:00 p.m. Monday.