Curfew imposed in parts of central Paris and other cities after rioting across France
It comes after the country's interior minister admits that police "lost control" in some cities.
**Curfew imposed in parts of central Paris and other cities after rioting across France**
French authorities have introduced overnight curfews in parts of central Paris and other cities after a weekend of rioting and looting across the country.
Police in Paris said a curfew would run from 23:00 local time (21:00 GMT) to 06:00 in Place de la République, where protesters had gathered over the weekend, and in the Les Halles shopping district, while a ban on unauthorised gatherings was also in place in several other areas of the city centre.
Partial curfews, limiting the movement of young people and restricting gatherings, were announced in cities including Marseille, Nice and Lyon in the south, as well as Lille and other towns in the north.
Earlier, Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez, whose resignation was rejected by President Emmanuel Macron, admitted that police had "lost control" in some cities.
The unrest began last month with students calling for better school conditions, but the protests have since broadened to include a wider range of grievances.
Officials said more than 2,500 people had been arrested. According to the AFP news agency, one demonstrator had a hand blown off by a police crowd-control grenade. About 1,000 police officers were injured.
After a crisis meeting on Monday, the prime minister said local mayors were being given the authority to impose curfews "where they need", without saying which cities would be affected.
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu, who did not rule out declaring a state of emergency in the country, said the government would also allocate money to help damaged areas recover, with the funding to be recovered from those responsible for the violence.
"There will be a law that will be put in place to find ways of making sure that those who have damaged properties will have to pay," Lecornu said.
He also announced a partial unemployment fund for people unable to work because of the riots and looting.
Meanwhile, Nuñez said 200 investigators were reviewing CCTV footage in an effort to identify possible ringleaders.
Nuñez tried to resign on Sunday, but Macron refused "given the need for continued command of law enforcement", the Élysée Palace said. The statement said Nuñez should be transparent about what Macron called "intelligence and foresight failings".
The head of France's Chambers of Commerce and Industry (CCI) said more than 2,000 shops and other businesses had been directly affected by the weekend's violence.
CCI head Alain Di Crescenzo told France's broadcaster RTL that the damage from the riots was estimated at "hundreds of millions of euros". Jean-Luc Chauvin, president of the CCI's Marseille branch, told the BBC that many of the city's shopowners were in "deep distress" and fear for their survival.
Two French government ministers said looted goods had been listed on certain selling platforms. A Vinted spokesperson said the sale or solicitation of stolen goods was "strictly prohibited".
"Since this weekend, our teams have taken immediate action to identify and remove listings linked to the looting, and we have stepped up monitoring of suspicious listings," it said.
Some 550,000 demonstrators took to the streets over the weekend to protest rising fuel prices, the cost of living and worsening public services, including schools.
Groups of rioters, some dressed in black and wearing masks and balaclavas, were seen setting fire to cars and buildings and looting businesses in Paris, Marseille and other cities and smaller towns.
In the central city of Limoges, the ornate 19th Century city hall was gutted by a fire started by rioters on Saturday, with its clock tower and roof collapsing as the flames spread.
The US Embassy in France has issued an alert advising its citizens to avoid areas affected by the recent demonstrations.
The warning says to "exercise caution" if they find themselves close to large gatherings. China and Germany have issued similar warnings.
Some politicians have accused the left-wing La France Insoumise party of playing a role in the violence, with Lecornu alleging in an earlier news conference that some groups "want to create chaos in our country up until the presidential elections".
The party's leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon, who will stand in next year's presidential election, responded by calling on the French PM to "prove his accusation" or "apologise, shut up, and stop stoking disorder".