Paris braces for new student protests

The French capital braced for more street protests today by students trying to force the government to withdraw a much-contested jobs law, with a warning from the interior minister that violence would be severely punished.

Today’s protest will be the fifth in just over a week in Paris, with some seeing violence from a radical fringe of protesters.

In each case, police have used tear gas and intermittent charges to disperse unruly crowds.

Dozens of universities have been disrupted, with some 18 of them shut down by the protest movement.

Next Tuesday, unions plan a national strike to raise the pressure on the government over the law, expected to take effect in April.

It would allow employers to more easily hire and fire youths less than 26 years old.

Students were being bussed into Paris from Nantes and other cities for today’s march, France-Info radio reported.

Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy promised severe punishment “to make an example” of anyone taking part in violence.