France was set for a fresh day of protests over labour reforms on Thursday, in yet another challenge for the embattled government of President François Hollande, reports FRANCE 24.
The protests led by student groups and labour unions coincide with strikes by air traffic controllers that are expected to cause travel chaos for thousands of passengers.
A few moderate unions have given their support to proposed changes to France's famously stringent labour laws, but tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets in the past three weeks, angry over plans to make it easier for companies to fire workers.
Marches have turned violent at times, with cars burned and more than 30 people arrested in Paris last week.
A video of an officer punching a 15-year-old boy being held by two other officers on the sidelines of a protest in the capital went viral and has fuelled further anger. Organisers have threatened an even bigger day of demonstrations on Thursday.
Protesters were set to start gathering at Place d’Italie in southern Paris around 1pm.
A battle is also raging within Hollande's ruling Socialist party, with many on the left of the party fiercely opposed to the reforms, billed as a last-gasp attempt to boost France's flailing economy before next year's presidential election.