More than 600 people were arrested as protests rocked France for a third straight night over the fatal police shooting of a French-Algerian teenager that has shocked the nation.
Nearly 200 police officers have been injured as the French government struggled to restore order. At least 667 people have been arrested following a third night of protests in France, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin says. He tweeted that police and firefighters faced the “rare violence” that swept the country again last night with courage.
Video and images from France showed cars burned, shops ransacked and buildings vandalized as the government deployed 40,000 police officers across the country as protest flared.
France has Halted all Public Transport across the Nation beginning later tonight as 40,000 Federal and Local Police have been Deployed across the Country in hopes to Quell the Nationwide Protests and Riots that have been ongoing for almost 2 Days now, due to the Shooting Death of… pic.twitter.com/ci3vvSAv8V
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) June 29, 2023
The protest that began in Nanterre, where the young boy was shot, also broke out in Lille, Toulouse, Marseille, Lyon, Pau and Montpellier as the night advanced.
Fireworks and projectiles were thrown at police, and buses and bus depots torched in towns and cities across the country.
Macron calls violence ‘unjustifiable’
President Emmanuel Macron convened a second meeting of ministers at the Interior Ministry in response to the third night of clashes and violence.
“The last few hours have been marked by scenes of violence against police stations, but also schools and town halls… against institutions and the Republic,” he said, adding that “these (attacks) are absolutely unjustifiable”.
Macron and other government officials, including Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne, have called for patience and allow the criminal justice system to run its course. “We need calm for justice to carry out its work,” Macron said Wednesday. “We can’t allow the situation to worsen.”
Why are people protesting in France?
Protests in France continued Friday morning, after a third night of violence, riots and clashes with security officials over the fatal shooting of a 17-year-old boy in the Parisian suburbs by a police officer on June 27.
🗣️Reactions to a teenager killed by a police officer in France continue
— Anadolu English (@anadoluagency) June 29, 2023
🪧Protesters led by mother of teenage victim of police shooting stage 1.5 kilometer protest walk with slogan 'Justice for Nahel' pic.twitter.com/isHJ3qlUq1
Nahel M., was shot in the chest at point-blank range on the morning of Tuesday, according to French media. The killing has sparked debate and protests in France about police tactics long criticized by rights groups over the treatment of people in low-income suburbs, particularly ethnic minorities.
Who was Nahel M?
The victim, identified as Nahel M., was of Algerian descent and the only child brought up by his mother. He lived in Nanterre with his mother Mounia.
The teenager’s mother called for a march in tribute to her only child. “What am I going to do now?” his mother asked. “I devoted everything to him. I’ve only got one, I haven’t got 10 [children]. He was my life, my best friend.”
Nahel was pulled over for breaking traffic rules while driving a yellow Mercedes on Tuesday. Police initially reported that an officer had shot at the teenager because he was driving at him, but this was contradicted by a video circulating authenticated by AFP.
Nahel died from a single shot through his left arm and chest. Police and paramedics tried to resuscitate him but he was declared dead at 9:15 a.m. local time.
Nahel’s lawyer, Yassine Bouzrou, said he would file an additional complaint for false testimony over the allegation that Nahel had tried to run them over.
In her first media interview, Nahel’s mother, Mounia, told the France 5 TV channel: “I don’t blame the police, I blame one person: the one who took the life of my son.” She said the officer responsible, who was detained and charged with voluntary homicide on June 29, “saw an Arab face, a little kid, and wanted to take his life”.
Anger at police brutality
Thousands of people gathered to march in memory of the teen and many wore T-shirts that read “Justice for Nahel.”
Celebrities, including French football players, also expressed disgust and outrage over the incident. “I am hurting for my France,” tweeted Kylian Mbappé, captain of the French men’s national football team and a star player.
Activists in France have accused the nation’s police force of discrimination and racial profiling, which they say often go unpunished.
NOW – Looting, violent riots spread to several cities in France. The situation is out of control in parts of the country. pic.twitter.com/ngsGcVVNol
— Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) June 30, 2023
The Algerian Foreign Ministry extended its condolences to Nahel’s family, saying in a statement their “grief and sorrow are widely shared in our country” and that it will “closely follow the developments of this tragic case.”