Trump says Paris will be "a Muslim city very soon"; Macron calls such claims "stupid"

US President Donald Trump said on Monday 19 October that "Paris is going to be a Muslim city very soon" as he blamed immigration for the violence that followed nationwide cost-of-living protests in France. He was speaking to reporters in Washington.

Trump said he had told French President Emmanuel Macron a long time ago that he was making a big mistake by letting too many people into the country, and that Macron should have closed France's borders. He added that if Europe did not close its borders, it was finished.

The Associated Press described Trump's claims that Muslim migrants were responsible for the unrest as unsubstantiated. Macron responded on 21 October, saying that comments by foreign leaders about the riots were as unacceptable as they were stupid, and that France had faced foreign manipulation of information after the looting. Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said his ministry could give concerned countries clarification to help stop false information from spreading.

The violence followed the protests of 17 October, when about 550,000 people marched against rising fuel prices and the cost of living and nearly 2,400 people were arrested after rioting and looting. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu met union representatives and announced a large security operation for the following Saturday, AP reported.

Trump has made immigration a central theme ahead of the 3 November midterm elections in the United States.

This report was expanded on 1 November 2026 using reporting from AP and NDTV.