Trump has blamed Islam and migration for mass student protests in France.
NewsOnline Nigeria reports that US President Donald Trump has blamed what he described as “mass migration” and Islam for the ongoing student-led protests in France, despite the demonstrations being centred on concerns over poor school conditions, staffing shortages and education funding.
Trump made the comments on Tuesday in a post on his Truth Social platform as more than 250,000 people took part in demonstrations across France.
“What’s happening in France is nothing less than out of control mass migration,” Trump wrote.
“This isn’t about schools, this is about Islam wanting to take over a once great Country!”
Trump did not provide evidence linking the protests to Islam or migration.
The protests began in late September, with students blocking entrances to hundreds of high schools over complaints about missing teachers, overcrowded classrooms, overloaded timetables and deteriorating school infrastructure.
The demonstrations have since spread across France, with teachers, parents and unions joining the students. Tuesday’s protests were accompanied by sporadic clashes between protesters and security forces in several cities.
French authorities put the number of demonstrators at more than 250,000, while organisers gave a significantly higher figure.
There has been no established link between the student movement and religious or migration-related demands. Reporting on the protests has instead focused on education-related grievances, including teacher shortages, poor infrastructure and inequality in schools.
MAGA Voices Amplify France Protests
Trump’s comments come as figures associated with his Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement have increasingly used images of the French unrest to advance arguments about immigration and political ideology.
Trump ally Glenn Beck described the unrest as a warning to Western countries, while right-wing commentator Dave Rubin shared footage of the protests and warned that similar developments could occur in the United States.
The comments come ahead of the US midterm elections, with Trump increasingly focusing his political messaging on issues including immigration.
France Pushes Back
French officials have rejected attempts to frame the protests around issues unrelated to the students’ stated grievances.
Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said France needed to ensure that its own account of events was communicated internationally rather than allowing other countries to define the narrative.
“You’ll get the Iranians’ version, perhaps the version from some Israelis, perhaps the version from some Americans,” Barrot told a parliamentary committee on Tuesday.
Barrot said French diplomatic missions were working to communicate France’s position internationally.
The protests remain focused primarily on demands for improvements to the country’s education system, while the French government faces growing pressure to address deteriorating school conditions and shortages of teachers.
