Teen arrested over flamethrower attack during student unrest in France (VIDEO)

French police have arrested a teenager on suspicion of using an aerosol can to direct a jet of flames at a woman’s face during high school and university student protests sweeping the country.

The altercation was filmed on Thursday in the southern port city of Marseille, where protesters attacked public transport, torching at least one bus and a fire engine. The victim, a social worker, told BFM TV that she was waiting for a bus when a crowd of young people approached and began vandalizing the bus stop. She said she tried to intervene, prompting one of the youths to use an aerosol can as an improvised flamethrower.

“I wasn’t expecting such violence. I thought I might get shoved … I didn’t expect kids to be so violent,” the woman said. “Fortunately, my face didn’t suffer injuries as serious as the images might suggest,” she added.

She suffered first-degree burns to her face, according to Le Parisien.

Police identified the suspect as a 15-year-old boy whose name has not been released.

The demonstrations began in late September over unfilled teaching posts at a high school in Creteil, near Paris, before spreading nationwide as students demanded better learning conditions, including more teachers, smaller classes, and repairs to deteriorating buildings. They have also called for increased funding for public schools.