17h23: BVA Poll: 45% of French now want Villepin to resign

17h22: 12,000 to 15,000 in Dijon. Train station now occupied.

17h55: 35,000 to 90,000 march in Toulouse
8000 to 20,000 in Perpignan
23,000 to 45,000 in Montpellier

Road blockages reported in Rennes and Laval.

17h15: At least 20% of Public Sector workers have joined the strike according to government figures.

17h08: Reports of record numbers of protesters in the town of Nancy, between 26000 and 52000 people have joined demonstrations.The university also voted to continue a strike and blockade until Thursday. Elsewhere in the region:


Metz: 8000 demonstrators
Epinal: 3500-6000
Verdun: 700-900
Bar-le-Duc: 500-900

17h02: In the overseas territory of Reunion, there have been anti CPE marches, with 2500 to 6000 marchers in St. Pierre and 2000 to 6000 marchers in St. Denis

17h00: Over 3 million demonstrating across France, the CGT believe. 15,000 to 45,000 marching in Lille, tf1 report.

16h55: Police in Lorient use teargas to clear railway tracks occupied by around 300 demonstrators. Teargas fired and stones thrown in Saint Brieuc as several hundred high school pupils block roads. They now head towards the station, Ouest France report.

16h51: 26,000 to 52,000 march in Nancy.

16h45: Trouble in Rennes, CRS riot police have charged demonstrators who had tried to reach the local UMP party offices.

16h41: 45,000 to 120,000 march in Bordeaux, up from last weeks 31,000 to 100,000.

16h06: CGT estimating 700,000 marching in Paris.

15h29: 250,000 marching in Marseille

14h29: Le Monde is running a useful map showing demonstration sizes as they are reported.

15,000 to 45,000 reported demonstrating in Lyon. 14,000 to 40,000 in Pau. 10,500 to 31,000 in Limoges.

Demonstrators in Paris now gathering at the Place de la Republique, as they prepare to march towards Place d’Italie. Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy is said to be visiting Place d’Italie at 15h00 to speak to police

Meanwhile a call has been made for demonstrators to gather at Place Pigalle at 20h00 this evening.

14h05: More figures in from Brittany:

11,400-30,000 in St Brieuc
11,500-28,000 in Lorient
13,000-30,000 in Brest
8,000-20.000 in Quimper
5,600-12,000 in Vannes
1600-2700 in Saint-Lo

In Lorient, 200 protesters are on the railway tracks blocking trains.

13h48: 28,000-60,000 in Grenoble

15,000-40,000 in Rouen
10,000-25,000 in Le Havre
13,500-50,000 in Clermont Ferrand
Marseille 250,000 (organisers figure)
21,000-50,000 in Rennes

12h32: 10,000 to 20,000 in Tours, 10,000 to 30,000 in Roanne

Both organisers figures slightly up from last week.

12h30: 9000 to 12,000 in Cherbourg, Brittany. This figure up from from last weeks police figure of 6000 Ouest France report.

12h26: Ouest France reporting around 7000 to 8000 in Lannion, compared to last weeks 7000. They report 30,000 in Rennes, 10,000 in Quimper, 12,000 in Lorient. tf1 reporting 5000 to 16,000 in Reims.

12h10: First reports of numbers for todays demonstrations:

52,000 to 100,000 in Nantes, compared to last weeks 42,000 to 70,000.
10,000 - 35,000 in Le Mans, compared to last weeks 10,000 to 30,000

12h05: In the small town of Belley 1000 protesters, of which 250 were students, assembled at the station and then marched to the main roundabout. The roundabout was blocked by protesters, linking arms to symbolise their unity. Ther march then proceeded to the town hall at 12, the town hall has now been occupied by students.

12h02: 30% of Air France flights cancelled at the airport Toulouse-Blagnac.

2 TGV out of 3 running, 45% of regular trains

Light disturbances in the Parisian subway with 3 out of 4 running on the lines 3bis, 6, 7, 8 and 9 and 2 out of 3 in circulation on lines 2, 3 and 1.

on the RER Line A (cross-Paris suburban metro system), the traffic is assured on average of 51% trains. 37 % of the traffic on the RER B and 56 % on the RER C 50 to 56 % of the trains roll on RER D. 53% on the RER E.

“The withdrawal of the CPE is negotiable. I hope that the demonstrations will help us to carry a fatal blow” says Bernard Thibault of the CGT union.

Delays of 45 to 90 minutes at Orly airport.

Consumption of alcohol prohibited during the demonstration in Strasbourg.

At the airport of Marseilles-Marignane, 32 cancelled domestic flights.

At Nice, 22 flights cancelled because of stops of work of the air controllers

Anti-CPE demonstrators block the accesses to the industrial park of Boulogne-sur-Mer.

8.4% of postal workers striking compared to 14.7% during last weeks strike, report Le Figaro. 18.3% of railway workers striking, comared to 27.7% last week.

4000 police deployed in Paris ahead of todays demonstration.

For continuing English language coverage, check out libcom.org/blog - Unrest in France

Background: The story so far - a look at the growing revolt against CPE | Glossary of the Unrest

For breaking news, see French IMCs: Paris | Lille | Toulouse | Marseille | Nantes | Liege | Auvergne | Grenoble