Paris braces for more protests as businesses board up

Paris woke up under cloudy skies and fear of new violent protests, prompting shopkeepers and restaurant owners to take security measures. Storefronts were boarded up with wood, and some businesses closed for the day. Around Place de la Bastille, banks, supermarkets, pharmacies, and perfume shops were fortified. A builder said wooden boards sold out, while a tobacconist looted last Saturday closed early. Police encouraged private security, and some merchants bought defense weapons like rubber-ball pistols and pepper spray. About 70,000 security forces were mobilized, a 20% increase from last Saturday, following calls for insurrection on social media. Last week's protests drew up to 800,000 people, with 2,900 arrests and around 3,000 businesses affected. Paris police moved the permitted march route to a less central location.