The city of Marseille, in the south of France, has banned public demonstrations scheduled for this Friday (30) to protest the death of a 17-year-old teenager by a traffic policeman. Authorities said all public transport would stop at 7 pm local time and encouraged restaurants to close outdoor eating areas earlier.
Violence erupted in Marseille, Lyon, Pau, Toulouse and Lille, as well as parts of Paris, including the working-class suburb of Nanterre, where 17-year-old Nahel M., who was of Algerian and Moroccan descent, was killed shots on Tuesday.
France vowed to examine “all options” to restore order after protesters torched buildings and cars and looted shops across the country on the third night of fury.
The youth’s death, caught on video at a traffic stop, ignited long-standing resentment among poor and racially mixed urban communities over incidents of police violence and allegations of systemic racism within law enforcement.
The boy’s mother said she only blames the police officer who shot her son for her son’s death.
More than 200 police were injured and 875 people arrested overnight, officials said, as protesters clashed with police in towns and cities across France, with buildings, buses and other vehicles set ablaze and shops looted.
Energy Minister Agnes Pannier-Runacher said several employees of energy distribution company Enedis were also injured by stones thrown during the clashes.
The Interior Ministry said 79 police stations were attacked overnight, as well as 119 public buildings, including 34 town halls and 28 schools.
The government would consider “all options” to restore order, Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne said, previously calling the violence “intolerable and inexcusable” in a tweet.
President Emmanuel Macron, in televised remarks from a cabinet crisis meeting, said he would ask social media platforms to remove the “most sensitive” images of riots from their feeds and reveal to authorities the identities of users who foment violence.
A Paris public transport source told broadcaster BFM TV that tram and bus services in the capital would end at 9 pm each day until further notice.
In an earlier attempt to contain the violence, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin on Thursday night increased the number of national police by four times to 40,000 police, 249 of whom were injured, the ministry said.
(Posted by Fábio Mendes, with information from Reuters)
Source: CNN Brasil
Bruce Belcher is a seasoned author with over 5 years of experience in world news. He writes for online news websites and provides in-depth analysis on the world stock market. Bruce is known for his insightful perspectives and commitment to keeping the public informed.
