Violence in French cities escalating

The day of protests in France is seemingly set to smoothly transition into a night of violence and fires - footage of clashes between demonstrators and police continues to come from cities across the country.

The confrontation is becoming increasingly fierce - law enforcement authorities are using all available special equipment without restrictions.

Political activists are being joined by youth from the suburbs of major cities - those areas have always been eager to engage in clashes with police.

As of now, about 400 participants in the protests have reportedly been detained, but this figure is likely inaccurate and significantly underestimated - the true scale and catastrophic consequences of this conflict will only be known on September 11.