France Deploys 70,000 Officers Nationwide for Protests

France is deploying about 70,000 police and gendarmes, backed by helicopters, armored vehicles and water cannons, to prevent renewed violence during Saturday’s planned demonstrations over the cost of living. The security push follows last weekend’s widespread unrest and a deadly shooting in Trappes near Paris; authorities are investigating the shooting as a suspected terrorist crime and have said a racist motive is possible. The government has warned it will take a firm approach to violence and is restricting some demonstrations, while reviewing authorized union requests and proposing routes away from sensitive areas. The Louvre and several other major Paris museums will close, and Art Basel Paris has canceled its weekend program amid safety concerns.