“On Tuesday, the Russian disinformation network Matryoshka circulated 12 pieces of fake news on X about the protests in France, impersonating various French media outlets, including France24, Le Figaro, BfmTv and Le Parisien,” says Colon, a lecturer at Sciences Po Paris

From the pro-Russian Doppelgänger network to Iranian and Algerian media, Moscow, Tehran and Algiers have exploited the protests to fuel discontent and attack Macron. Brussels is investigating foreign disinformation campaigns that are alleged to have helped stir up the demonstrations

“Young people perceive social dynamics as at a standstill: they struggle to find work and feel ill-prepared to face a society undergoing rapid technological transformation,” the former prime minister told Bloomberg

On social media, footage of the violence, looting and destruction that struck several French cities over the weekend has been widely shared and commented on within the American extremist sphere. This has fuelled a narrative linking public disorder to France’s progressive migration policies

“Macron seems to have absolutely no realisation of the gravity of the situation. He is convinced that these are still sporadic violent demonstrations. This, however, is a full-blown uprising,” Brice Couturier, an essayist and expert on French politics, tells Il Foglio.