“Order has been restored” stated the French President Emmanuel Macron visiting today Thursday the city hall of Po, where he met with elected representatives of the region. Speaking to journalists, the French president said:

“We have all experienced an important moment in the life of the nation. We will continue to work. The first response is order, calm and harmony, and then we must work on the root causes of what happened.”

“We’re going to make some far-reaching decisions in the coming weeks,” Macron then said, noting that the French people are “shocked” and that he wants to act with “austerity and determination.” “Is it a question of financial resources? I’m not sure that’s the only answer,” he continued, taking exception to the way police authorities have dealt with recent riots.

No violent incidents were reported during the night of Wednesday, July 6. Only 20 people have been arrested and the number of recorded incidents is down, authorities point out. “Last night showed that the situation has more or less returned to normal,” French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne said during a visit to areas hit by the unrest. “We remain, of course, extremely vigilant, very gradually reducing security measures,” she added, also saying she was “determined that there should be no impunity for the perpetrators of this violence.”