French President Emmanuel Macron rejected Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez’s resignation Monday, keeping him in office to maintain continuous law enforcement leadership after severe rioting and looting swept cities across France over the weekend.
Nuñez offered to step down Sunday after acknowledging that security forces had lost control in some cities during Saturday’s unrest.
“I submitted my resignation because I am responsible for everything that happens,” Nuñez told France Inter.
The Élysée Palace said Monday morning that Macron declined the resignation because of the “need for continuous command of law enforcement” during the crisis.
More than half a million people demonstrated across France on Saturday in protests over the high cost of living and the state of public education.
Demonstrations deteriorated into rioting, arson and looting, with more than 1,500 businesses targeted and public buildings, including town halls, set on fire. Nearly 2,400 people were arrested and close to 1,000 police officers were injured.
Macron said in a televised address Sunday evening that security forces had faced unprecedented violence in numerous cities despite their professionalism and that police operations would be reviewed.
Rather than accepting Nuñez’s resignation, Macron directed him to determine what “deficiencies in foresight and information gathering” had left authorities unprepared for the unrest.
“To put an end to the building of barricades and looting, he has also asked the interior minister to introduce new procedures for domestic security forces in the fight against rioters as quickly as possible on the ground,” the Élysée Palace added.
Nuñez acknowledged shortcomings in preparations, saying there had been a lack of “forward-looking action” in mobilizing law enforcement.
“There was naturally an imbalance” between law enforcement and people on the streets, as well as “a loss of control,” he said.
Nuñez said authorities were responding to the failures exposed during the weekend violence.
“Everything is being done so that such a thing does not happen again.”
