Demonstrators filled streets in several European cities and capitals this weekend to voice opposition to elevated living expenses in their nations.

While clashes in Paris and additional French locations drew significant attention, large crowds also gathered in Portugal, Italy, and Belgium. Numerous arrests occurred, with images and videos capturing violent confrontations with law enforcement and incidents of looting at local stores.

Energy cost increases, linked in part to the US-Israeli conflict with Iran and the Russia-Ukraine tensions, have driven up prices. Some actions in Belgium and France started with students before expanding to include union members and other groups.

Here is an overview of the disorder that emerged across the region this weekend, as initially peaceful marches gave way to riots and theft.

Lisbon

In Lisbon, Portugal's capital, residents marched on October 17 against the cost-of-living pressures, stagnant wages, and expensive housing.

The event, coordinated by the CGTP, the country's main trade union federation, also occurred in Porto and Coimbra. The union reported that thousands of workers participated overall.

Around 12.7 percent of Portugal's population resides in overcrowded homes.

Housing prices in Portugal saw the steepest yearly rise among EU countries in the second quarter of 2026, climbing 16.5 percent. In Lisbon, average rents equal 116 percent of typical salaries, surpassing a standard monthly income by 16 percent.

Earlier this week, authorities cleared a tent encampment set up by activists in a central Porto square to highlight mounting housing expenses.

Brussels

In Belgium, students have staged protests in recent weeks over increasing education fees, with some turning violent over the weekend.

Video showed police deploying water cannons and tear gas amid confrontations with demonstrators in Brussels.

Belgian interior minister Bernard Quintin stated on X on Saturday that the events in Brussels had moved beyond simple protest and that all required measures would be taken to reestablish order against the rioters.

Clashes also occurred in Liege. Police detained 195 individuals in the two cities during Saturday's actions, according to The Brussels Times.

Milan

In Milan, a weekend march against conflicts and rising living costs also led to clashes between protesters and police.

Images captured disorder around Piazza del Duomo, the prominent central square near Milan Cathedral and a busy tourist spot, where looters broke shop windows and set items ablaze.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni denounced the violence in a post on X on Sunday.

She wrote that thugs who hijack demonstrations to create disorder, assault security forces, and paralyze cities go too far. Demonstrating remains a right, but burning cities does not.

Similar actions took place in other northern Italian cities. Police figures reported by Rai News, Italy's public broadcaster, estimated about 5,000 participants in Milan, 3,000 in Turin, 2,000 in Bologna, 600 in Brescia, and 800 in Bergamo.

Italy's yearly inflation rate rose to 4.1 percent in September from 3.2 percent in August.

In Milan, home prices have increased as well, with residential asking prices 49 percent higher in September than in 2018, per the property site Immobiliare.it.