French riots

(Newser) - Saturday might not be the best time to take in the sights of Paris: Authorities, fearing a repeat of last week's violent protests, are closing major tourist sites including major museums and the Eiffel Tower, the BBC reports. Thousands of anti-government "gilets jaunes"—"yellow jacket"—...

(Newser) - French workers fighting a plan to raise the retirement age to 62 are costing the country's economy over $500 million a day, the nation's finance minister warned yesterday. Oil refineries have been blocked for nearly two weeks and uncollected garbage has been piling up in several cities—but the protest...

(Newser) - French President Nicolas Sarkozy wants his striking, rioting countrymen to calm down, act responsibly—and work until they are 62. He issued an appeal for calm yesterday as protests over plans to raise the retirement age continued to rock the country, the Guardian reports. Sarkozy insisted that he has no...

(Newser) - Protests over plans to raise the retirement age from 60 to 62 have brought much of France to a standstill, and authorities fear the civil unrest is just getting started. Young people have joined the strikes and protests that have disrupted daily life and a wide swath of industry. More...