There were heavy clashes between police and protesters and the use of tear gas in the French city of Marseille and other cities across the country on Saturday night as unrest reigned for the fifth time in a row following the death of a teenager who was shot by police at point-blank range on Tuesday in the Paris suburb of Nanterre. while in an expensive car without a driver’s license.
In a Paris suburb, rioters attacked the home of the district mayor and threw bombs at his wife and their young children.
On Sunday, the grandmother of 17-year-old Nael, whose funeral on Saturday drew huge crowds, called for an end to the violence.
“To the people who are breaking, I say ‘Stop’! Don’t break the windows, the buses, the schools. We want to calm things down,” she said, believing some rioters “took Nael as a pretext.” “I only blame the one who killed my grandson,” she told BMFTV on Sunday.
Meanwhile, a court in Grenoble announced the first three sentences for looting during the protests. Those arrested for this receive between three and four months in prison.
An increased police presence in central Paris appeared to have curbed the protests, but overall 716 people were arrested in France last night. The interior ministry said there was a drop in violence compared to previous days of protests over the death of Nael M., who was shot dead on Tuesday in the Paris suburb of Nanterre.
In a tweet, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin praised law enforcement for their “resolute action” that led to a “peaceful night.”
Over 1,300 people were detained the night before, and over 900 on Thursday evening.
On Saturday evening, the most severe were the clashes in Marseille, where there was a fight between the demonstrators and the law enforcement officers for more than an hour, BBC reported.
This happened despite the drastic measures taken by the authorities and the suspension of all public transport after 18:00, including the subway. A ban on protests was also introduced. Police reinforcements, including armored vehicles and two helicopters, were sent to the southern port city, AFP reported. However, this did not prevent heavy clashes.
In Paris, there was also a heavy police presence and a large number of police officers were deployed along the iconic Champs-Élysées.
There were calls on social media for protesters to gather there, but the police presence appeared to have turned most of them away. In addition, public transport in the French capital was stopped at 9 p.m. However, there were also problems there and 196 people were arrested.
In the northern city of Lille, police special forces were seen on the streets. Images from the city overnight showed firefighters putting out flames in cars set on fire by protesters.
Twenty-one people were arrested in the city of Lyon. Clashes were also reported in Nice and Strasbourg.
Officials hope a tipping point may have been reached – that the insurgents are losing steam thanks to security measures.
Nael’s funeral was held at the Nanterre Mosque earlier on Saturday.
Family supporters warned the media not to take pictures.
Nael was shot after refusing to stop for a traffic stop. He died at the scene before the ambulance arrived. A video shared online in the hours after Nael’s death showed two police officers trying to stop the vehicle, one pointing his gun at the driver.
Still from the video of the shooting of Nael
The officer who fired the fatal shot has been charged with first degree murder and has apologized to the family. His lawyer said he was devastated.
Clashes continued for a fifth night, and calls for their end included the rarely outspoken French national soccer team, most of whose leading players are from minority backgrounds.
“Violence must give way to grief, dialogue and repair (of the damage),” the team said Friday through its captain and Paris Saint-Germain superstar Kylian Mbappe in a social media post.
Nael’s death has reignited debate over the state of French police, including a controversial 2017 firearms law that allows officers to shoot when a driver ignores an order to stop.
More broadly, this led to questions of racism. The UN human rights office said the unrest was a chance for France to “address the deep problems of racism in law enforcement”.
President Emmanuel Macron condemned the violence on Friday “with the utmost firmness” and said Nael’s death had been used to justify acts of violence – calling it an “unacceptable use of the death of a teenager”.
The crisis is an extremely unpleasant development for Macron, who had hoped to be able to focus on implementing the program for his second term after protests over pension reform that erupted in January and lasted for months.
The fact that he canceled his planned state visit to Germany, which was expected to start on Sunday, speaks volumes for the seriousness of the crisis.
2023-07-02 14:13:02
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