France Launches Attempted Murder Probe After Molotov Attack on Riot Police

French prosecutors have opened an investigation for “attempted murder of persons vested with public authority” after a molotov cocktail was hurled at riot police during Saturday’s protests in Paris.

An officer was set alight by the incendiary device and suffered second‑degree burns, according to the prosecutor’s office.

The Paris Police Prefecture reported that “explosive devices were thrown at around fifteen gendarmes as well as police officers,” and that several hundred rioters were accused of targeting security forces with projectiles.

Interior Minister Laurent Nunez described the violence as “extraordinary” in what he said were otherwise mostly peaceful gatherings.

Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators, including high‑school and university students, took to the streets for a third weekend of protests over education and living costs, with an estimated 320,000 protesters nationwide.

About 70,000 police officers and gendarmes—France’s military police—were deployed across the country on Saturday to respond to the demonstrations.

Video from the city’s east showed an incendiary device exploding at the feet of police, and prosecutors confirmed the initial injuries included second‑degree burns.

Investigators are now working to identify those responsible for the petrol‑bomb attack.