France braces for "Act V"; Greta Thunberg joins protests VIDEO

Protests are taking place in Nantes, Strasbourg, Lyon, Paris, Reims and other cities. French Minister of National Education Édouard Geffray said that around 200 schools would be closed today due to the protests, adding that the demonstrations were having less impact on school operations than in previous weeks, BFM TV reported.

Protest marches have also been organized in some cities, including Nantes and Lyon.

Teachers at Paul Éluard High School in Saint-Denis, which attracted considerable attention at the beginning of the student protests, spent the night at the school.

Students staged demonstrations outside the school, receiving support from around 20 lawyers who formed a “chain of lawyers in their robes to protect high school students,” as well as Swedish activist Greta Thunberg.

The high school student mobilization is entering its third week, with demonstrations dubbed “Act V” planned for today, ahead of the All Saints’ Day school holidays, which could, according to observers, “dampen the momentum of the protests.”

According to the French Ministry of the Interior, protests held on October 8 drew 71,500 people nationwide, while nearly 256,000 people took part in demonstrations on October 6.

Marches have been scheduled for today in Paris, where participants are due to set off at 2 p.m. from Place d’Italie and march to Les Invalides, as well as in Marseille, Nice and Poitiers.

National education sector employees are also expected to join the protests, following a call by six trade unions.

Meanwhile, hundreds of students blocked the entrance to Panthéon-Assas University in Paris this morning, chanting anti-fascist slogans and expressing support for the high school student protests.