Protesters in Brussels, Belgium, set fires and smashed bus stops over proposed educational reforms as demonstrations turned violent, with social media users pinning the riots on Islamists.

Police used tear gas to disperse the crowds as streets were strewn with debris, stores were vandalized, and windows were shattered. Police warned residents to stay away from the city’s main areas.

The proposed reforms that ignited the protests would increase tuition in French-speaking colleges by 35%, bringing them in line with Flemish- and Dutch-speaking universities. The tuition, which is expected to rise from €835 to €1,194 ($1,280) per year, is still considered low by international standards and is well below the cost of even public universities in the United States.

As part of Belgium’s French Community government’s cost-cutting measures, teachers will be required to increase their teaching hours without a corresponding raise in their salaries.

“We will have to work more for the same wages, and working conditions will deteriorate, with more people having larger classes,” a teacher who attended the protest told a local news outlet.

French Community government leader Elisabeth Degryse explained to reporters Thursday that the government had taken these measures to head off a looming €1.9-billion deficit.

A vote by the parliament of the French Community government is expected later today.