French schools bracing for mass closures as student protests intensify, minister says

The French education minister has announced that up to 500 schools nationwide will be fully or partially closed on Monday, citing a surge in student protests that has unsettled the country.

Education Minister Edouard Geffray stated on Sunday that classes in roughly 400 to 500 high schools will be “totally or partly suspended” because security requirements remain unmet. He also reported that 24 schools have been damaged, with some burned or vandalized, since the protests began.

Geffray characterized the closures primarily as a preventive security measure in anticipation of large‑scale demonstrations slated for Tuesday, as called by protest leaders.

Students in French secondary schools, known as lycées, contend that their education is being undermined by high teacher absenteeism, excessively long school days, deteriorating facilities, and other longstanding complaints.

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