France tightens security for Saturday protests with bans and route changes

France faces a new day of protests this Saturday with a large police deployment, restrictions on gatherings in several cities, and preventive measures to avoid further violence following incidents last weekend. Interior Minister Laurent Núñez warned that disparate groups will likely try to provoke incidents, while authorities have seized potentially dangerous objects like mortars and petanque balls. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu convened a crisis unit, and early tensions emerged in Lyon, where police used tear gas. Paris has altered protest routes after courts rejected appeals, with La France Insoumise accepting the Prefecture's itinerary. Authorities have banned certain marches, removed street furniture to prevent use as projectiles, and deployed 70,000 officers nationwide, vowing to be "inflexible" with vandals.