France Shuts Paris Museums, Deploys 70,000 Police as Protests Spread

Paris closed major museums and deployed up to 70,000 officers nationwide Saturday to prevent a repeat of last week's violent protests, which included looting and attacks on public buildings. The Louvre, Orsay, Picasso Museum and Grand Palais shut their doors, while shopkeepers boarded up stores after some 3,000 businesses were damaged last weekend. Some rallies in Lyon, Nice and Montpellier were banned, drawing criticism from trade unions. The protests began over high school staffing shortages and have expanded to address living costs and university admissions, occurring months before the presidential election. President Emmanuel Macron's popularity is at its lowest since 2017.