French President Emmanuel Macron has accused Donald Trump and other foreign leaders of making "stupid comments" about France's street unrest for political gain, speaking during a visit to Qatar as France prepared for more protests this weekend, The Guardian reported.

Macron said there had been "foreign manipulation of information" after looting in Paris and other French cities last weekend. "And that has led to comments that are as unacceptable as they are stupid, from many people, including foreign leaders," he said. Asked by a reporter if he was referring to Mr Trump, Mr Macron replied: "Among others," AP reported.

Mr Trump has used the violence to rally his political supporters, making claims that Muslim migrants are responsible for the unrest, which French authorities have not established, and urging Mr Macron to "close your borders and take control before it is too late", AP reported. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who faces an election, had separately described France as facing an invasion by extremist Islam, according to Guardian reporting.

Mr Macron added: "We've seen AI-generated images depicting scenes that never actually happened in France. We've had people claiming that we were invaded by hordes of migrants and Islamists, which is completely false." He did not specify which AI-generated images he was referring to. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said his office could provide the countries concerned with clarification "to help them avoid spreading or amplifying false information", AP reported.

The unrest began as protests over soaring living costs and turned into widespread rioting and looting last weekend in Paris, Marseille, Lyon and Limoges, where the town hall was set on fire, according to Guardian and BBC reporting cited in coverage. Macron vowed there would be no repeat of last weekend's disorder on Saturday, when a Yellow Vest march and student rallies are planned, Reuters reported in coverage of his Doha remarks.