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NANTRENE (Reuters) – Sporadic violence and looting struck several cities across France in a fourth night of protests after the police shooting of a teenager, but it was far less intense than in the past, authorities said early on Saturday.
France deployed 45,000 officers backed by light armored vehicles, while police units and other security forces fanned out across the country to quell violence over the killing of 17-year-old Nahil, who was killed during a traffic stop in a Paris suburb on Tuesday.
Despite the security presence, looting took place on Friday night in the cities of Marseille, Lyon and Grenoble, with groups of masked hooligans looting shops.
The demonstrators also set cars and rubbish bins on fire.
But during a visit to Mantes-la-Jolie west of Paris, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said early Saturday that the night’s violence was “less intense”, with 471 arrests nationwide and pockets of tension in Marseille and Lyon in particular.
Darmanin had announced an “extraordinary” mobilization of the police and gendarmerie to avert a fourth consecutive night of rioting over the killing of Nahil, who will be buried on Saturday in the Paris suburb of Nanterre, where he lived and was killed.
Dozens of police cars were positioned near the entrance to the Vieux Pont district of Nanterre, which has been the epicenter of the unrest.
The French national football team has joined calls for an end to the violence.
“A time of violence must give way to a time of mourning, dialogue and reconstruction,” the team said in a statement posted on social media, PSG captain and star Kylian Mbappe.
Les Bleus said they were “shocked by the brutal death of a young Nahl”, but asked that the violence give way to “other peaceful and constructive ways of self-expression”.
The southern port city of Marseille has once again been the scene of clashes and looting from the center and north in long-neglected working-class neighborhoods visited by President Emmanuel Macron at the start of the week.
At around 2:00 a.m., Marseille police said they arrested 88 people overnight of masked and “very mobile” youths accused of looting or attempted robbery.
A major “riot-related” fire broke out in a supermarket, according to a police source.
“Scenes of looting and rioting in Marseille are unacceptable,” the city’s mayor, Benoit Bayen, wrote on Twitter, calling on the state to send additional powers to enforce the law.
Shortly thereafter, Darman announced on Twitter that “big reinforcements are arriving at the moment.”
Looting and clashes between masked protesters and police took place in parts of Grenoble, Saint-Etienne and Lyon, while in Angers-et-Tours in the west of the country only a few groups confronted the police.
The Paris region was not spared from the flames, as Colombians in the northwestern suburbs were enveloped in a strong burning smell and firefighters extinguished a car that had been set on fire, according to an AFP journalist at the scene.
In Nanterre, nine people were arrested carrying pots and Molotov cocktails.
In Saint-Denis, an administrative center was damaged by a fire, and in Val d’Oise, the Persan-Beaumont town hall and the municipal police station caught fire and were partially destroyed.
Buses and trams, which had been the target of some violence the previous nights, stopped running at 9:00 pm on Friday and the sale of large fireworks and flammable liquids was banned.
Prime Minister Elizabeth Borne also announced the cancellation of large-scale events across the country. Two concerts by famous singer Mylene Farmer at the Stade de France, scheduled for Friday and Saturday, were among the cancellations.
Macron urged parents to take responsibility for underage troublemakers, a third of whom were “young or very young”.
He also decried the “unacceptable exploitation of the death of a teenager” in some quarters and vowed to work with social networks to reduce “copycat violence” prevalent through services such as TikTok and Snapchat.
Macron has tried to balance pressure for a harsh response with fears of provoking a stronger backlash.
The unrest has sparked concerns abroad, with France hosting the Rugby World Cup in the fall and then the Olympic Games in Paris in the summer of 2024.
Britain and other European countries have updated their travel advisories to warn tourists to stay away from areas affected by the riots.
France’s tourism industry has expressed concern about the disruptions, as hotels and restaurants face cancellations.
“Our hotel members have suffered from a wave of cancellations of reservations in all areas affected by damage and clashes,” said Chef Thierry Marx, President of the Main Federation of Hoteliers and Restaurateurs.
The unrest sparked by Nahl’s killing has revived long-standing grievances about policing and racial profiling in France’s low-income, multi-ethnic suburbs.
In her first media interview since the shooting, the teen’s mother, Monia, told France 5 television on Thursday: “I don’t blame the police, I blame one person: the person who killed my son.”
She said the 38-year-old officer in charge, who was arrested and charged with first degree murder, “saw an Arab face, a little child, and wanted to commit suicide.”
The United Nations human rights office said on Friday that the killing of the North African teenager was “a moment for the country to seriously address the deep issues of racism and racial discrimination in law enforcement”.
A State Department statement denied the accusation, describing it as “completely baseless”.
France deployed 45,000 officers backed by light armored vehicles, while police units and other security forces fanned out across the country to quell violence over the killing of 17-year-old Nahil, who was killed during a traffic stop in a Paris suburb on Tuesday.
Despite the security presence, looting took place on Friday night in the cities of Marseille, Lyon and Grenoble, with groups of masked hooligans looting shops.
The demonstrators also set cars and rubbish bins on fire.
But during a visit to Mantes-la-Jolie west of Paris, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said early Saturday that the night’s violence was “less intense”, with 471 arrests nationwide and pockets of tension in Marseille and Lyon in particular.
Darmanin had announced an “extraordinary” mobilization of the police and gendarmerie to avert a fourth consecutive night of rioting over the killing of Nahil, who will be buried on Saturday in the Paris suburb of Nanterre, where he lived and was killed.
Dozens of police cars were positioned near the entrance to the Vieux Pont district of Nanterre, which has been the epicenter of the unrest.
The French national football team has joined calls for an end to the violence.
“A time of violence must give way to a time of mourning, dialogue and reconstruction,” the team said in a statement posted on social media, PSG captain and star Kylian Mbappe.
Les Bleus said they were “shocked by the brutal death of a young Nahl”, but asked that the violence give way to “other peaceful and constructive ways of self-expression”.
The southern port city of Marseille has once again been the scene of clashes and looting from the center and north in long-neglected working-class neighborhoods visited by President Emmanuel Macron at the start of the week.
At around 2:00 a.m., Marseille police said they arrested 88 people overnight of masked and “very mobile” youths accused of looting or attempted robbery.
A major “riot-related” fire broke out in a supermarket, according to a police source.
“Scenes of looting and rioting in Marseille are unacceptable,” the city’s mayor, Benoit Bayen, wrote on Twitter, calling on the state to send additional powers to enforce the law.
Shortly thereafter, Darman announced on Twitter that “big reinforcements are arriving at the moment.”
Looting and clashes between masked protesters and police took place in parts of Grenoble, Saint-Etienne and Lyon, while in Angers-et-Tours in the west of the country only a few groups confronted the police.
The Paris region was not spared from the flames, as Colombians in the northwestern suburbs were enveloped in a strong burning smell and firefighters extinguished a car that had been set on fire, according to an AFP journalist at the scene.
In Nanterre, nine people were arrested carrying pots and Molotov cocktails.
In Saint-Denis, an administrative center was damaged by a fire, and in Val d’Oise, the Persan-Beaumont town hall and the municipal police station caught fire and were partially destroyed.
Buses and trams, which had been the target of some violence the previous nights, stopped running at 9:00 pm on Friday and the sale of large fireworks and flammable liquids was banned.
Prime Minister Elizabeth Borne also announced the cancellation of large-scale events across the country. Two concerts by famous singer Mylene Farmer at the Stade de France, scheduled for Friday and Saturday, were among the cancellations.
Macron urged parents to take responsibility for underage troublemakers, a third of whom were “young or very young”.
He also decried the “unacceptable exploitation of the death of a teenager” in some quarters and vowed to work with social networks to reduce “copycat violence” prevalent through services such as TikTok and Snapchat.
Macron has tried to balance pressure for a harsh response with fears of provoking a stronger backlash.
The unrest has sparked concerns abroad, with France hosting the Rugby World Cup in the fall and then the Olympic Games in Paris in the summer of 2024.
Britain and other European countries have updated their travel advisories to warn tourists to stay away from areas affected by the riots.
France’s tourism industry has expressed concern about the disruptions, as hotels and restaurants face cancellations.
“Our hotel members have suffered from a wave of cancellations of reservations in all areas affected by damage and clashes,” said Chef Thierry Marx, President of the Main Federation of Hoteliers and Restaurateurs.
The unrest sparked by Nahl’s killing has revived long-standing grievances about policing and racial profiling in France’s low-income, multi-ethnic suburbs.
In her first media interview since the shooting, the teen’s mother, Monia, told France 5 television on Thursday: “I don’t blame the police, I blame one person: the person who killed my son.”
She said the 38-year-old officer in charge, who was arrested and charged with first degree murder, “saw an Arab face, a little child, and wanted to commit suicide.”
The United Nations human rights office said on Friday that the killing of the North African teenager was “a moment for the country to seriously address the deep issues of racism and racial discrimination in law enforcement”.
A State Department statement denied the accusation, describing it as “completely baseless”.
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