French President Emmanuel Macron says demonstrations could be banned if necessary, following severe rioting that has rocked the nation.

“Given the current situation, the prefects will make decisions in co-ordination with mayors to protect our cities, public buildings and shops and – where necessary – even go so far as to ban certain gatherings and take all necessary measures,” Macron said in a televised speech on Sunday night (local time).

Macron said he had also asked the interior minister to look into the actions of police.

More than half a million people demonstrated in France on Saturday in a day of protest against the high cost of living. There was looting, arson and damage to property in many cities, with masked rioters attacking town halls, police stations and other government buildings.

The dramatic collapse of a historical town hall tower in the city of Limoges, known for its porcelain, was posted all over social media, including cries of horror from residents who were shocked by the destruction.

“Yesterday, despite their professionalism, our law enforcement officers were confronted with unprecedented violence in numerous cities,” Macron said.

“I have repeatedly asked the government to draw all the lessons from this regarding investigation and foresight, and to ensure that such a thing cannot happen again. I expect clear answers, and there will be full transparency.”

The rioters would be punished and held to account, Macron said.

“Anyone who destroyed something must pay for it. Anyone who looted must compensate for the damage. Anyone who tried to overthrow the republic will be held to account for it,” he said.

France was still reeling on Sunday from one of its most violent days of unrest in years after protests over high ‌prices and public services left one demonstrator dead, thousands arrested and hundreds of police injured. The proster died after suffering a cardiac arrest in demonstrations in Paris.

Police made more than 2000 arrests across France while more than 600 officers were injured, Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said.

“It’s like a war zone here,” said Dutch entrepreneur Tije De Boer, who had come to Paris with his children to visit a friend and said the protests forced him to flee his hotel at Place de la Republique, a trouble hotspot on Saturday.

Saturday’s unrest marked the convergence ‌of a month-long student movement with ⁠broader social discontent against rising living costs and declining public services.

It also laid bare the deep anger at Macron, who leaves office in 2027 after a decade in power that has increasingly become defined by social discontent, a weak economy and ballooning debt.

The government has blamed the violence on “ultra-left” groups as well as criminals who it said instigated the looting.

While hundreds of thousands protested peacefully, violent fringe groups targeted public buildings, looted luxury boutiques and supermarkets, and attacked police vehicles and officers.

A massive clean-up operation began in cities from Lille in the north ⁠to Marseille in the south and Strasbourg in the east to Bordeaux in the south-west, where ‌a masked mob ​invaded the residence of the local prefect.

Nunez said several hundred shops had been damaged on Saturday.

In Paris, smashed shop windows, burnt-out bicycles and spray-painted slogans bore witness to ​a day that ‌began largely with peaceful demonstrations but descended into violence.

The unrest has increased pressure on ​Macron and his government ahead of a presidential election due next year.

Bordeaux mayor Thomas Cazenave said up to 100 stores had been looted in his city while Marseille mayor Benoit Payan announced emergency financial aid to support those businesses affected by the violence.

French retailer Carrefour’s CEO Alexandre Bompard told French broadcaster BFMTV that 50 of the company’s shops had been damaged, including ​20 that were looted, with losses from the damage running into the tens of millions of euros.

-with DPA