Protests against French President Emmanuel Macron’s pension reform are drawing more and more radicals, with up to one in five voters approving the use of violence to further the cause, according to recent French polls.

Since January, weekly demonstrations organized by trade unions have drawn millions of people nationwide, with the marches remarkable for both their scale and their overwhelmingly peaceful nature.

Last Thursday’s demonstrations appeared to mark a turning point, with more than 400 security forces injured and hundreds of fires lit in the streets of Paris. Further clashes took place on Tuesday in the capital, as well as in other towns including Nantes in western France.

French Interior Ministry estimate the number of protesters were 740,000 in various French cities, among them 93,000 in the capital alone.

A poll by Toluna Harris Interactive on Tuesday suggested that one in five respondents (18 percent) “approved” of violent means to further the goals of the movement.

Among people who said they backed the protests, the figure rose to 25 percent.

Source: Kuwait News Agency