A policeman shot dead a teenager in France: violent protests in the country have been raging for several days

In France, for the fifth day, protests continue, caused by the death of a teenager from a police bullet. This increased pressure on President Emmanuel Macron after he urged parents to keep their children out of the streets and accused social media of fueling the unrest. The edition told in more detail Times of Israel.

Photo: IStock

Police said 30 people across the country had been arrested by midnight June 270.

Despite repeated government calls for calm and tougher police work, violence was observed on 30 June. In the eastern city of Strasbourg, an Apple store was looted where police fired tear gas, and a fast-food restaurant was smashed in a mall in the Paris area as police fought off people trying to break into the closed store.

The southern port city of Marseille, which initially escaped the violence that first erupted in the Paris region, is experiencing a second night of turmoil. Before nightfall, police said, people were throwing projectiles, setting fires and looting stores. They made almost 90 arrests. On the evening of June 30, looters broke into a Marseille gun store and fled with weapons, and a man with a hunting rifle was later arrested, police said. The night before, two off-duty officers were seriously injured, including one by a knife, when they were attacked by about 20 people.

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The Lyon authorities reported that the rioters again abandoned the police in the suburbs. In the city center, law enforcement made 31 arrests to stop an attempted robbery of shops after an unsanctioned protest against police violence, in which about 30 people took part on June 1300 in the evening.

Acts of violence also broke out in some overseas territories of France.

In French Guiana, a 54-year-old man was killed by a stray bullet on the evening of June 29 when rioters opened fire on police in the capital, Cayenne. On the small Indian Ocean island of Réunion, protesters set fire to garbage cans, fired projectiles at police and damaged cars and buildings, officials said. About 150 officers were sent there.

Man continues to eat his sandwich as rioters and police clash in Nanterre, #France.#Paris #FranceRiots #France #FranceHasFallen #FranceProtest #France pic.twitter.com/Kg5wrIOr29

— Shah (@S0101019) July 1, 2023

In the face of an escalating crisis that failed to be quelled by hundreds of arrests and massive police deployments, Macron refrained from declaring a state of emergency, an option that was used under similar circumstances in 2005.

Instead, his government stepped up its law enforcement response. By the evening of June 30, the already heavily reinforced police teams were reinforced with another 5000 officers, according to the Minister of the Interior, bringing the total to 45. Some have been recalled from vacation. Minister Gerald Darmanin said that on June 000 alone, law enforcement officers made 29 arrests and noted the young age of the detainees - an average of 917 years. More than 17 police and firefighters were injured, he said.

Darmanin ordered the cancellation of all public buses and trams at night, which became a target for the rioters.

Social Networks

The minister said he had warned social media representatives that they could not afford to be used as channels for inciting violence.

“They were very cooperative. We are going to provide them with as much information as possible,” Darmanin noted. “We will prosecute anyone who uses social media to commit violent acts.” And we will take all necessary action if we become aware that social media companies are not complying with the law.”

Macron also focused on social media platforms that broadcast dramatic images of vandalism, burning cars and buildings. He said social media plays a "significant role" in the violence. Singling out Snapchat and TikTok, the president said they were used to orchestrate riots and served as channels for emulation of violence.

Macron said his government will work with tech companies to establish procedures for "removing sensitive content" and expects a "spirit of responsibility" from them.

The rioters have deadly weapons.
This isn't Gaza, Syria, and Libya, it's #France.#FranceRiots #franceviolence #RiotsFrance #Macron #FranceHasFallen pic.twitter.com/WC4T9HkFOi

— Anshul (@trueanshul) July 1, 2023

Snapchat spokesperson Rachel Rakuzen said the company has stepped up moderation to identify and respond to riot-related content.

Murder of a teenager

It all comes just over a year before Paris and other French cities are due to host 10 Olympians and millions of visitors at the Summer Olympics. The organizers said they are closely monitoring the situation and continue to prepare for the Olympics.

The fatal shot at the 17-year-old, identified only by his first name Nahel, was caught on video. This shocked France and stirred up long-standing tensions between the police and the youth.

Macron said a third of those arrested on the evening of June 29 were "young people, sometimes very young" and that "parents have a responsibility" to keep their children at home.

As Nanterre prosecutor Pascal Prache noted, the police tried to stop Nahel because he looked very young and was driving a Mercedes with Polish numbers in the bus lane. He allegedly ran a red light to avoid being stopped and then got stuck in traffic.

The police officer has been charged with premeditated murder. According to Prache, the initial investigation concluded that the officer's use of his weapon was not legally justified. Preliminary charges mean that the investigating judges suspect wrongdoing but need to conduct further investigation before taking the case to trial.

According to the prosecutor, the officer (in his words) was afraid that he and a colleague or someone else could be hit by a car in which Nahel tried to escape.

Rioters in France looted a fire truck. Where's the army? What's going on? #FranceRiots pic.twitter.com/QUkDc99FSJ

- Paul Golding (@GoldingBF) July 1, 2023

Nahel's mother, named Munia, emphasized that the complaint was against the officer, and not against the police in general.

"He saw a little boy who looked like an Arab and decided to take his life," she said, adding that justice must be "very hard."

“A police officer cannot just take a gun and shoot at our children,” said the mother of the murdered child.

Lethal use of firearms is less common in France than in the United States, although last year French police shot dead 13 people who did not follow traffic rules.

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This year, three more people died under similar circumstances, including Nahel. The deaths of these people forced society to demand greater accountability in France, where protests against racial injustice took place, among other things, when police in Minnesota killed George Floyd.

Nahel's funeral is scheduled for July 1. Nanterre Mayor Patrick Jarry said France needed to "bring change" in disadvantaged areas.

The morning after across France. pic.twitter.com/el1slgZUhl

— Truthseeker (@Xx17965797N) July 1, 2023

Race was a taboo subject for decades in France, officially committed to the doctrine of universalism. After Nahel's assassination, French anti-racist activists renewed their complaints about police behavior in general.

This week's protests echoed the three weeks of unrest in 2005 that followed the electrocution deaths of 15-year-old Boun Traoré and 17-year-old Zaid Benna while hiding from police at an electrical substation in Clichy-sous-Bois.

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