French President Emmanuel Macron returned from his visit to the Gulf states this week triumphant, having secured a deal that would provide his country with an additional 200,000 metric tons of diesel per month.
But the timing of his trip — right in the middle of violent and destructive riots that have thrust France into the global spotlight — was counterproductive for projecting an image of control.
Macron has stood by his decision to go through with the trip despite the unrest, saying that his government needs to approach situations like this with “calm and determination” — canceling the prearranged meetings would have betrayed a sense of “nervousness.”
“What we are doing here is important for our citizens, so I decided to maintain it,” he told a reporter in Doha on Wednesday. “The hand must not tremble at the top of the state.”
Now back in the Elysee Palace, Macron has switched to a war footing, lambasting the political factions he blames for instigating the chaos and promising a military response to restore the country to normalcy.
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<p> ” data-large-file=”https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/macron-returns-to-paris-on-war-footing-to-quash-illegitimate-riots-he-blames-on-organized-ultra-left-groups.webp” src=”https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/macron-returns-to-paris-on-war-footing-to-quash-illegitimate-riots-he-blames-on-organized-ultra-left-groups.webp” alt=”Macron” class=”wp-image-4775742″ srcset=”https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/macron-returns-to-paris-on-war-footing-to-quash-illegitimate-riots-he-blames-on-organized-ultra-left-groups.webp 1024w, https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/macron-returns-to-paris-on-war-footing-to-quash-illegitimate-riots-he-blames-on-organized-ultra-left-groups.webp?resize=300,200 300w, https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/macron-returns-to-paris-on-war-footing-to-quash-illegitimate-riots-he-blames-on-organized-ultra-left-groups.webp?resize=768,512 768w” sizes=”(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px”><figcaption class=)
French President Emmanuel Macron attends a meeting of the security council at the Elysee Palace in Paris on Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Teresa Suarez, Pool)“We witness both political and even seditious acts carried out by organized ultra-left groups aiming to bring down the republic — acts that these groups themselves openly claim, characterized by extreme, intense violence,” he said Thursday, referencing government reports that assert left-wing party La France Insoumise actively promoted and stoked the unrest.
French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu said after a Monday meeting with intelligence agencies that evidence “clearly” showed left-wing groups were seeking to foment disorder from now until the 2027 presidential election.
A readout from an Oct. 1 meeting that leaked to the public stated: “Shared assessment by the intelligence services on the origin of the movement: an operation organized by LFI (France Unbowed) and its proxies on the far left.”
Lecornu is meeting with the leaders of major political parties Thursday to coordinate efforts to promote peace, joined by Interior Minister Laurent Nunez and Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin. Representatives of the police and intelligence agencies will also be in attendance.
LFI leader Jean-Luc Melenchon will not be able to attend, instead being represented by party coordinator Manuel Bompard, but is lambasting the government for attempting to “shift the blame by accusing LFI of violence that it has always rejected.”
“We’re going to go, we’re going to wreck your meeting!” Melenchon previously threatened on Tuesday. “Are you going to make us sign a certificate? Is that what you want? Do you really think we are going to do that? Of course not!”
The initial implementation of a nightly curfew earlier this week successfully paused the riots that have been recurring for weeks, but organizations and informal networks tied to the protests indicate a mass mobilization is planned for Saturday.
Macron has acknowledged the “shortcomings” in his government’s previous responses to riots, attributing its failures to an “element of surprise.”
 target the head ” as they gather against poor education school conditions in Paris, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Teresa Suarez)</p>
<p> ” data-large-file=”https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/macron-returns-to-paris-on-war-footing-to-quash-illegitimate-riots-he-blames-on-organized-ultra-left-groups-1.webp” src=”https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/macron-returns-to-paris-on-war-footing-to-quash-illegitimate-riots-he-blames-on-organized-ultra-left-groups-1.webp” alt=”Paris protests” class=”wp-image-4775743″ srcset=”https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/macron-returns-to-paris-on-war-footing-to-quash-illegitimate-riots-he-blames-on-organized-ultra-left-groups-2.webp 1024w, https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/macron-returns-to-paris-on-war-footing-to-quash-illegitimate-riots-he-blames-on-organized-ultra-left-groups-2.webp?resize=300,200 300w, https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/macron-returns-to-paris-on-war-footing-to-quash-illegitimate-riots-he-blames-on-organized-ultra-left-groups-2.webp?resize=768,512 768w” sizes=”(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px”><figcaption class=)
Police face protesters holding a banner reading: “High school students target the Bac. The Bac (Anti-Crime Brigade) target the head” as they gather against school conditions in Paris on Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Teresa Suarez)Leading up to Oct. 17, French intelligence suspected that approximately 200,000 individuals would be mobilized for the protests — a woefully low miscalculation that left them unprepared for the approximately 500,000 rioters that materialized.
STUDENT GROUP AMONG THOSE SPURRING ON FRANCE PROTESTS IS ACCUSED OF MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD CONNECTIONS
“The priority is a return to calm,” he said following a meeting with ministers and intelligence leaders, explaining that the government will ban “groups without legitimacy” from demonstrating “everywhere we can.”
Trade unions will be one exception to these bans, and some previously approved political demonstrations will be allowed to take place with a modified route.
