A masked man in France has been filmed directing a jet of flame from a makeshift flamethrower into a woman’s face during violent student-led unrest that has swept the country. The graphic video, widely shared online including on X, shows a hooded individual using an aerosol spray can and lighter to create a sustained burst of fire aimed directly at the woman during a street confrontation in Marseille. She is seen reacting as the flames reach her face.
Nationwide protests turn violent
The attack formed part of nationwide protests by high school and university students over overcrowded classrooms, teacher shortages and crumbling school buildings. What started as blockades last week escalated into arson, clashes with police and attacks on emergency services. French authorities said the demonstrations had descended into “urban violence.”
Nearly 3,000 people, the vast majority of them minors, have been arrested since the protests began. The interior ministry reported 1,949 detentions on Thursday alone, with 305 police officers injured.
Officials respond to the unrest
Education Minister Edouard Geffray said 65 education staff had been hurt, including 40 headteachers, and that about 400 schools would remain closed on Friday. More than 1,000 lycees have been affected by protests or disruptions, with blockades at over 220.
In Marseille, the violence was particularly extreme. Protesters surrounded a fire engine sent to extinguish a blaze outside Saint-Exupéry high school, forced firefighters to abandon the vehicle, looted equipment and set the truck on fire. One firefighter suffered a broken nose. At nearby Victor Hugo high school, the principal, vice-principal and other staff were doused with petrol during an attempted arson attack on waste containers.
Government condemns the violence
Interior Minister Laurent Nunez condemned masked protesters who arrived carrying projectiles and seeking confrontation with officers. He said there was “nothing that justifies showing up at institutions to demonstrate, masked, with your face disguised, carrying projectiles, and waiting for the intervention of law enforcement just to go after them”. Mr Nunez also reported multiple incidents of hydrochloric acid being thrown at police.
Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu convened a crisis cabinet meeting and stated: “Fireworks, fires, violence near high schools: nothing justifies endangering students, staff or police.” His office added that the upsurge in violence was making it “virtually impossible to maintain the continuity of public education”.
Online outrage and other incidents
Online reaction to the face-burning video has been visceral. One user wrote: “This is horrendous. When an agitator uses a flamethrower and burns someone in the face, they have crossed the line into pure evil. France is out of control.” Another posted: “Flamethrower blasted at girl’s face. What the heck is happening in France. This is shocking.” A third declared, “A French woman tells one of the rioters not to vandalise her city. He responds by trying to set her face on fire. France has committed suicide.”
Other incidents during the unrest include youths chasing and assaulting a female police officer in Paris while shouting “Kill her,” schools set ablaze in Nantes, Bordeaux and Rouen, supermarket looting, and attacks on journalists. Public transport was halted in some cities and restrictions imposed on the sale of flammable materials.
