Paris riots - latest: Nearly 1,000 arrested across France overnight as police ‘at war’
Nearly 1,000 people have been arrested across France overnight as police have claimed they are “at war” while the family of a teenager shot dead by an officer prepared for his funeral on Saturday.
Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin announced on Saturday morning that 994 people had been arrested in the fourth consecutive night of nationwide clashes while 79 were injured.
In turn, police claimed in a leaked intelligence report that they are “at wore with savage hordes of vermin” intent on attacking them and destroying as much property as possible.
Nahel Merzouk, 17, will on Saturday be laid to rest following an Islamic ceremony close to his home in the north-western Paris suburb of Nanterre, where he was shot in the chest as he sat at the wheel of a stationary Mercedes last Tuesday.
The officer responsible - identified as Florian M., 38 - remains on remand having been charged with murder.
Meanwhile, Nahel M’s mother, identified as just Mounia, told France 5 television: “I don’t blame the police, I blame one person: the one who took the life of my son.”
The UK Foreign Office has warned British tourists about the dangers of travelling in France.
Key Points
Teen’s mother speaks out for the first time since shooting
UK issues France travel warning after looting across city
UN says shooting a chance to address racism in police
France to halt bus, tram traffic on Friday night following riots - French interior minister
Young man dies after jumping out of building during riots - Rouen Prosecution Office
Britons travelling to France warned of travel disruption
Friday 30 June 2023 12:48 , Matt Mathers
The UK has warned residents travelling to France they could face “disruption” to road and public transport journeys following a third night of violent protests over the police shooting of a teenager.
“Since 27 June, riots have taken place across France. Many have turned violent. Shops, public buildings and parked cars have been targeted. There may be disruptions to road travel and local transport provision may be reduced, “ the Foreign Office said in updated guidance.
“Some local authorities may impose curfews. Locations and timing of riots are unpredictable. You should monitor the media, avoid areas where riots are taking place, check the latest advice with operators when travelling and follow the advice of the authorities.”
Thousands more police on streets on Saturday
07:33 , Tara Cobham
France deployed 45,000 police officers and some armoured vehicles on the streets on Saturday as riots rocked French cities for a fourth night over a teenager's fatal shooting by an officer during a traffic stop.
French interior minister Gerald Darmanin ordered a nationwide night-time shutdown of all public buses and trams in response to the riots and added 5,000 police to the streets, increasing the number to 45,000 overall.
ICYMI: Paris shooting: Where are the riots in France and why are they happening?
07:00 , Maroosha Muzaffar
President Emmanuel Macron has urged parents to keep teenagers at home. while his government is considering “all options” to restore order after rioters torched cars and buildings and looted shops across France in a third night of violence over the police killing of a teenager during a traffic stop in a Paris suburb.
There were more than 800 arrests across the country into Friday, with Mr Macron saying a significant proportion of them were you people. Police and firefighters struggled to contain protesters and extinguish numerous blazes through the night that damaged schools, police stations and town halls or other public buildings. There was also looting reported in a number of locations, including central Paris.
Read the full piece by Chris Stevenson here:
Where are the French riots and why are they happening?
Bus carrying Chinese tourists attacked in France
06:26 , Maroosha Muzaffar
China’s state-sponsored Global Times reported today that a bus carrying 41 Chinese tourists was attacked in Marseille, France as unrest continued overnight.
Global Times shared a video also on Twitter which showed a bus carrying Chinese tourists moving through the streets cautiously. The window of the bus was visibly cracked.
Meanwhile, it was reported that the riots were slightly calmer on Friday night throughout France.
Teen’s mother speaks out for the first time since shooting
05:22 , Maroosha Muzaffar
The mother of the teen who was shot at point blank by a police officer in a French suburb has spoken out for the first time.
Nahel M’s mother -- identified as just Mounia --- told France 5 television: “I don’t blame the police, I blame one person: the one who took the life of my son.”
The 38-year-old officer, meanwhile, was detained and charged with voluntary manslaughter on Thursday. The mother claimed that he “saw an Arab face, a little kid, and wanted to take his life”.
‘Time for violence must end and be replaced by a time of mourning and reconstruction'
04:48 , Maroosha Muzaffar
The players of the French football team launched a “call for appeasement, awareness and responsibility” yesterday after days of unrest.
“The time for violence must end and be replaced by a time of mourning, dialogue and reconstruction,” urged Les Bleus in a statement posted on social media.
Les Bleus said they were “shocked by the brutal death of young Nahel” but asked that violence give way to “other peaceful and constructive ways of expressing oneself”.
Emmanuel Macron urges social media to take down ‘most sensitive types of content'
04:40 , Maroosha Muzaffar
French president Emmanuel Macron has urged social media companies to take down “the most sensitive types of content” that had been posted on TikTok and Snapchat.
The president has asked them to supply authorities with the names of people using their services to organise violence, it was reported.
A spokesperson for Snapchat, meanwhile, said it had “zero tolerance” for content that promoted violence and hatred.
Macron accuses protesters of exploiting teenager’s death
04:09 , Maroosha Muzaffar
French president Emmanuel Macron has accused protesters of exploiting the death of a teenager shot by police at point-blank range.
According to local reports, the president stopped short of declaring a state of emergency but said that more officers would be deployed to contain the violence.
Mr Macron also urged parents to keep rioting children at home.
ICYMI: Paris shooting: Where are the riots in France and why are they happening?
Saturday 1 July 2023 00:01 , Eleanor Noyce
President Emmanuel Macron has urged parents to keep teenagers at home. while his government is considering “all options” to restore order after rioters torched cars and buildings and looted shops across France in a third night of violence over the police killing of a teenager during a traffic stop in a Paris suburb.
There were more than 800 arrests across the country into Friday, with Mr Macron saying a significant proportion of them were you people. Police and firefighters struggled to contain protesters and extinguish numerous blazes through the night that damaged schools, police stations and town halls or other public buildings. There was also looting reported in a number of locations, including central Paris.
Chris Stevenson reports:
Where are the French riots and why are they happening?
In pictures: Protesters hold placards in Bordeaux whilst officers stand guard in Lille
Friday 30 June 2023 23:45 , Eleanor Noyce
Paris has now seen three nights of unrest following the killing of a 17-year-old by police officers on 27 June.
The death of the teenager, known only as Nahel, was captured on video and has shocked France, stirring long-simmering tensions between young people and the police in disadvantaged neighbourhoods around the country.
Transport and businesses have been disrupted as a result of the clashes; on Friday (30 June), interior minister Gérald Darmanin asked regional prefects for all bus and tram services to stop from 9pm local time.
Recap: Who is Nahel M? The teen shot dead by police in France
Friday 30 June 2023 23:15 , Eleanor Noyce
Clashes first erupted on Tuesday night in and around the Paris suburb of Nanterre, where a teenager, identified as Nahel M, 17, was shot during a traffic check.
Nahel’s last name has not been released by authorities or his family. On Thursday, his mother called for a silent march in his honour in the square where the teenager was killed.
“I lost a child of 17-year-old, they took my baby,” the mother, who has not been named, said in a TikTok video.
Read more:
Who is Nahel M? The teen shot dead by police in France
Voices: France may be opening the door for the next Trump
Friday 30 June 2023 22:45 , Eleanor Noyce
In 1981, one of the first acts of François Mitterrand, the newly elected Socialist president of France, was to abolish the death penalty. The question France is asking today is: has it come back as state-sanctioned policy?
The video footage of a French police officer shooting a 17-year-old teenager dead at point-blank range through a car window has shocked all of France.
Deputies in the National Assembly held a minute’s silence. The young man’s mother called for a peaceful demonstration, but once again France erupted in anger with 150 arrests last night as police struggled to control the fury of the country’s north African community.
The video footage of a French policeman shooting a 17-year-old dead through a car window has shocked the whole country, writes Denis MacShane:
France may be opening the door for the next Trump | Denis MacShane
Britons warned to ‘avoid’ violence hotspots as riots and looting shake France
Friday 30 June 2023 22:15 , Eleanor Noyce
Britons have been warned against travelling to hotspots of violence in France as riots threatened to escalate out of control.
Newly-updated Foreign Office advice warns holidaymakers to “avoid areas where riots are taking place” as the situation becomes “unpredictable”.
A total shutdown of public bus and tram services was ordered nationwide on Friday night after shops were looted and several city centres were ablaze from protesters setting light to cars and buildings.
President Emmanuel Macron urged parents to keep teenagers at home, saying his government was considering “all options” to restore order.
Jane Dalton and Simon Calder report:
Britons warned to ‘avoid’ violence hotspots as riots shake France
In pictures: Protesters clash with police in Marseille, police stand guard at a shopping centre in Paris
Friday 30 June 2023 21:47 , Eleanor Noyce
Protesters have been pictured clashing with riot police in Marseille, southern France amidst widespread unrest following the fatal shooting of a 17-year-old.
More than 600 people were arrested overnight across France during a third night of unrest over the death of Nahel M, who was shot dead by an officer in Nanterre, about 11km northwest of Paris city centre.
Police officers have also been pictured standing guard in Rosny-sous-Bois, in the eastern suburbs of Paris.
Man dies after falling from building during riots in northern France - authorities
Friday 30 June 2023 21:38 , Eleanor Noyce
A young man died on Friday after falling from the roof of a supermarket in the suburbs of the northern French city of Rouen during overnight riots, local authorities said.
A police source told Reuters on Friday the man had fallen from the roof as the supermarket in the suburb of Petit-Quevilly in the Bruyeres shopping centre, was being looted by rioters.
The public prosecution office earlier told BFM TV that, based on the ongoing investigation, it was not established the store had been subject to a looting attempt.
Reuters could not verify the two accounts. The prosecution office could not immediately be reached for comment.
France’s interior minister said on Friday the coming hours would be decisive as he sent 45,000 police onto the streets following three nights of riots since an officer shot dead a teenager at a traffic stop in a working class suburb of Paris.
Paris police move to clear protesters from central Place de la Concorde
Friday 30 June 2023 21:26 , Eleanor Noyce
Police started clearing protesters from the iconic central Paris square of Place de la Concorde on Friday evening after an impromptu demonstration started amid nationwide unrest following the fatal shooting of a teenager by police.
“Clearing operation is ongoing on Place de la Concorde,” police said in a statement.
‘Systemic, I don’t know what that means’, says CGT Police union figure on racism
Friday 30 June 2023 21:15 , Eleanor Noyce
At the heart of the riots convulsing the racially mixed, working-class neighbourhoods around French cities are long-standing accusations by rights group of systemic racism in the police.
Police unions, and the interior minister with them, say there are only isolated cases of racism and deny it is systemic or widespread.
“Yes, there are racists, nobody denies that,” Anthony Caille of the CGT Police union told Reuters. “But systemic, I don’t know what that means.”
Because France is officially colour-blind and limits the use of ethnic statistics, it is hard to back up with data the widespread resentment among racial minorities that they are over-targeted by police and discriminated against.
In a significant ruling, the Paris Court of Appeal in 2021 found discrimination was behind police identity checks of three high school students - French nationals of Moroccan, Malian and Comorian origin - at a Paris train station in 2017.
“What we see is that it is difficult for magistrates to hand prison time to police officers - France is not an isolated case, in the U.S. and in Nordic countries, there are difficulties to condemn and sanction police officers too,” sociologist Sebastian Roche, editor of the Policing and Society journal, said.
After the Yellow Vest crisis of 2018-2019, which saw months of violent protests and a police clampdown, police doctrine and tactics also came under renewed criticism.
A rise in lethal police shootings over the last few years has been linked to a law reform in 2017, which broadens the circumstances in which an officer can use their firearm.
Coming into force in the aftermath of the 2016 Islamist attack in Nice, the law allows police officers to fire if they think the driver is “likely” to cause harm to people. Critics say that the provision creates a grey zone.
“It is completely vague, and it allows to shoot much more freely,” said Caille of the left-wing CGT police union.
Reuters analysis: Have there been efforts to reform the police in France?
Friday 30 June 2023 20:45 , Eleanor Noyce
Government ministers that have tried to reform the police in France and to give more independence to its watchdog have done so at their peril.
In June 2020, Macron’s former interior minister Christophe Castaner, who hailed from the Socialists, detailed plans to reform the police. These included a ban on the controversial use of chokeholds during arrests, reform of the IGPN police watchdog, as well as a zero-tolerance policy for racism in the police.
After an outcry from police unions, he was replaced by the tough-talking Gerald Darmanin, a former conservative, in a reshuffle a month later.
“Either you support the police or you run into trouble,” said Franck Louvrier, a former communications adviser to ex-President Nicolas Sarkozy when he was interior minister.
“The interior ministry is all about the human factor, the feelings you have for them, because police officers are under attack every day.”
A proposal by Darmanin to reform the police’s investigative branch angered the police this year, prompting several strikes at an uncomfortable time for the government just as the general public demonstrated against changes to pension rules.
Mother’s tragic last words with teenage son shot to death by Paris police sparking days of riots
Friday 30 June 2023 20:17 , Eleanor Noyce
The mother of a teenage boy whose death has sparked furious riots in France has described their last moments together before he was fatally shot in the chest by police.
The 17-year-old, named only as Nahel M and described as a French citizen with Algerian heritage, was shot at near point-blank range on Tuesday as he attempted to drive away from police who had pulled over his Mercedes in the Paris suburb of Nanterre.
His death, footage of which was shared to social media, has prompted three nights of intense riots across France, resulting in nearly 900 arrests.
My colleague Andy Gregory has the full story:
Mother’s tragic last words with son killed by Paris police sparking days of riots
Tour de France organisers ready to adapt amid riots
Friday 30 June 2023 19:47 , Eleanor Noyce
Tour de France organisers are ready to adjust to any situation amid the riots that have erupted in the country following the fatal shooting of a teenager by police, race director Christian Prudhomme said on Friday.
“We are in constant liaison with the State services and we are following the situation and how it has been evolving,” Prudhomme told reporters.
Law enforcement officers are designated to ensure security at the end of every stage and questions arose as to whether they could be pulled out of the race to be redeployed to anti-rioting duties.
“Depending on what happens we will adapt if needed,” said Prudhomme.
The Tour starts on Saturday from Bilbao and will enter France on Monday with a finish in Bayonne and a start from Dax for the fourth stage on Tuesday.
France to deploy 45,000 police to tackle riots on Friday night - Darmanin
Friday 30 June 2023 19:35 , Eleanor Noyce
45,000 police and gendarme officers will be deployed throughout the country on Friday evening, France‘s Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin told TF1 television as the country braces for more violence on the streets following the killing of a 17-year-old by a police officer earlier this week.
French police, long unreformed, under scrutiny after teenager shooting
Friday 30 June 2023 19:15 , Eleanor Noyce
The killing of a teenager by a police officer this week has revived long-standing questions about the state of the French police and the inability of consecutive governments to reform an institution bound by powerful unions.
In a country beset by regular bouts of unrest that often draw calls for a crackdown on trouble-makers, it can be hard to criticise a force that is under strain and losing staff.
But experts say the authorities can no longer turn a blind eye to accusations by right groups of rampant racism with the force, racial profiling, and questions about recruitment, training and police doctrine.
“What remains constant is a refusal by political powers to act on one of the factors of this explosive cocktail: the police,” historian Cedric Mas said on Twitter.
“Riots in the US and Britain in the 60s and 80s have led to deep reforms of the police. In France? Nothing for the past 40 years,” he said.
Many western governments, from Britain in 2011 to the United States with the Black Lives Matter movement born in 2013, have had to deal with race riots against police over the past decades. But officially colour-blind France has long refused to acknowledge any racial factor was at play.
Although France has introduced about 30 pieces of legislation on law and order in the past two decades, none have included an overhaul of police forces since a 1995 reform that gave broad co-management powers to unions, said Olivier Cahn, a law professor at Cergy University.
“From that point on, unions were involved in everything that’s co-managed, including the managing of human resources,” he told Reuters. “The concrete result in following years was unions doing deals with different interior ministers.”
Paris shooting: Where are the riots in France and why are they happening?
Friday 30 June 2023 18:47 , Eleanor Noyce
President Emmanuel Macron has urged parents to keep teenagers at home. while his government is considering “all options” to restore order after rioters torched cars and buildings and looted shops across France in a third night of violence over the police killing of a teenager during a traffic stop in a Paris suburb.
There were more than 800 arrests across the country into Friday. Police and firefighters struggled to contain protesters and extinguish numerous blazes through the night that damaged schools, police stations and town halls or other public buildings. There was also looting reported in a number of locations, including central Paris.
My colleague Chris Stevenson has the full story:
Where are the French riots and why are they happening?
Travellers warned to be aware of disruptions amid France riots
Friday 30 June 2023 18:18 , Eleanor Noyce
The Government has updated its advice for travellers to France amid rioting across the country.
The incidents follow the fatal police shooting of a 17-year-old driver and have resulted in the arrests so far of 875 people.
The interior minister has ordered a complete shutdown of all public bus and tram services across the country to take effect before sunset on Friday.
Millions of British people visit France every year, with the country a popular summer holiday destination too.
Dominic McGrath reports:
Travellers warned to be aware of disruptions amid France riots
Growing concern among British holidaymakers in France or booked to travel over weekend
Friday 30 June 2023 17:55 , Eleanor Noyce
Concern is growing among British holidaymakers who are already in France or planning to travel there over the weekend.
The Independent calculates that around 260,000 British travellers are booked on flights, ferries and trains to France on Saturday and Sunday.
While most of the unrest has taken place well away from tourist areas, closing down public transport in Paris and other big cities at night will cause significant problems for many holidaymakers.
Britain’s biggest budget airline, easyJet, says it will allow passengers who are booked to travel on Saturday or Sunday to switch to a different flight without paying the normal £49 fee.
An easyJet spokesperson said: “Any customers due to fly to France this weekend who would like to change their plans can contact our customer service team for assistance with their options which includes a transfer to an alternative flight and we will waive the change fee.”
Almost all Eurostar trains from London to Paris at the weekend are full, representing around 20,000 travellers.
A spokesperson for Eurostar spokesperson said: “Our services to France are currently running as scheduled and normal ticket conditions apply.
“We will continue to monitor the situation and will provide updates on Eurostar.com and Twitter if this changes.”
As the Foreign Office is not warning against travel, holidaymakers will not be able to claim if they decide not to continue with their trip to France, or to come home early.
Young man dies after jumping out of building during riots - Rouen Prosecution Office
Friday 30 June 2023 17:49 , Eleanor Noyce
A young man has died after jumping out of a building during riots last night, BFM TV reported on Friday, citing the public prosecution office in Rouen, northern France.
The supermarket on the building’s ground floor had been hit by riots.
France riots: Burnt cars pictured lining the streets in Nanterre, wreckages removed in Nantes
Friday 30 June 2023 17:45 , Eleanor Noyce
Violence has flared in the cities of Marseille, Lyon, Pau, Toulouse, Strasbourg and Lille as well as Paris where 17-year-old Nahel M. - of Algerian and Moroccan descent - was shot dead on Tuesday in the working class suburb of Nanterre. His death, caught on video at a traffic stop, has ignited longstanding complaints among poor, racially mixed, urban communities of police violence and racism.
Videos on social media showed urban landscapes ablaze. A tram was set alight in the eastern city of Lyon and 12 buses gutted in a depot in Aubervilliers, northern Paris.
In Nanterre on the capital’s outskirts, protesters torched cars, barricaded streets and hurled projectiles at police following an earlier peaceful vigil.
Looters ransacked shops including an Apple store in the eastern city of Strasbourg, a local official said. A source told Reuters that several Casino supermarkets had been looted.
The energy minister said several staff of power distribution firm Enedis were injured by stones during clashes. The interior ministry said 79 police posts were attacked overnight, as well as 119 public buildings including 34 town halls and 28 schools.
Snapchat monitoring riots in France closely
Friday 30 June 2023 17:14 , Eleanor Noyce
Snapchat has zero tolerance when it comes to content that promotes violence or hatred, a spokesperson told Reuters in a reply to French President Emmanuel Macron’s request to social media platforms to help tame violence amid riots in France.
“We continue to monitor the situation”, the spokesperson said.
The riots erupted this week following the killing of a 17-year-old by a police officer.
Macron earlier said social media helped rioters organise themselves but also contributed to “mimicking” behaviour by some young people, who repeated what they saw online and lost track of reality.
Is it safe to travel to Paris right now?
Friday 30 June 2023 16:54 , Eleanor Noyce
Paris has now seen three nights of unrest following the killing of a 17-year-old by police officers on 27 June.
The death of the teenager, known only as Nahel, was captured on video and has shocked France, stirring long-simmering tensions between young people and the police in disadvantaged neighbourhoods around the country.
But as the French capital is gearing up for its annual influx of summer holidaymakers, is it safe to travel to Paris?
Benjamin Parker reports:
Is it safe to travel to Paris right now?
In pictures: Police officers in riot gear stand guard in Strasbourg, a shopkeeper cleans graffiti from a storefront
Friday 30 June 2023 16:25 , Eleanor Noyce
More than 800 arrests have taken place across France following widespread protests over the police killing of a 17-year-old boy, identified as Nahel, in the Paris suburb of Nanterre.
Police and firefighters struggled to contain protesters and extinguish numerous blazes through the night that damaged schools, police stations and town halls or other public buildings. There was also looting reported in a number of locations, including central Paris.
Looters ransacked shops including an Apple store in the eastern French city of Strasbourg, a local official said on Friday.
Pop concert due to take place at Stade De France on Friday called off
Friday 30 June 2023 16:17 , Eleanor Noyce
A pop concert due to take place at the Stade De France on Friday night has been called off due to riots. The news was confirmed by a prefect of the Seine-Saint-Denis Departement, Reuters reports.
France’s national stadium, it is located in the commune of Saint-Denis, north of Paris. It is Europe’s sixth-largest stadium, with a capacity of 80,698.
Canadian-French pop artist Mylène Farmer had been due to perform there on Friday and Saturday night.
“By administrative decision, Mylène Farmer’s concerts at the Stade de France on 30 June and 1 July have been cancelled”, a statement in English on the Stade De France website reads.
“We are working on the modalities which will be communicated to you later. We understand your disappointment, but hope to see you again at the Stade de France very soon.”
UN says shooting a chance to address racism in police
Friday 30 June 2023 16:15 , Eleanor Noyce
The United Nations rights office has emphasised the importance of peaceful assembly, urging French authorities to ensure that use of force by police is legal, proportional and non-discriminatory.
“This is a moment for the country to seriously address the deep issues of racism and racial discrimination in law enforcement,” spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani said.
The policeman, who prosecutors said had acknowledged firing a lethal shot at the teenager, was on Thursday placed under formal investigation for voluntary homicide - equivalent to being charged under Anglo-Saxon jurisdictions. He is being held in preventive custody.
His lawyer, Laurent-Franck Lienard, said his client had aimed down towards the driver’s leg but was bumped, causing him to shoot towards his chest. “Obviously (the officer) didn’t want to kill the driver,” Lienard said on BFM TV.
Some Western governments warned citizens to be cautious.
Americans “should avoid mass gatherings and areas of significant police activity”, the U.S. Embassy said in a tweet, while UK authorities warned Britons of possible disruption to transport and local curfews.
The unrest has revived memories of three weeks of nationwide riots in 2005 that forced then-president Jacques Chirac to declare a state of emergency.
That wave of violence erupted in the Paris suburb of Clichy-sous-Bois following the death of two young men who were electrocuted in a power substation as they hid from police.
Looters ransacks Strasbourg stores amid French riots
Friday 30 June 2023 16:00 , Eleanor Noyce
Looters ransacked shops including an Apple store in the eastern French city of Strasbourg amid country-wide riots on Friday, a local official said.
Paris court reverses French police ban on Iranian opposition rally
Friday 30 June 2023 15:55 , Eleanor Noyce
A Paris court on Friday reversed a decision by the French capital’s police to ban an upcoming Iranian opposition rally over the risk of an attack, saying it interfered with the basic freedom to protest.
The ruling by the Paris administrative tribunal comes as police are fully stretched amid the worst riots seen across cities in France since 2005 sparked by the fatal police shooting of a teenager.
The Paris-based National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), political arm of the People’s Mujahideen Organisation of Iran (PMOI), has held frequent rallies in the French capital over the years. They have attracted thousands of followers and are often attended by high profile former U.S., European and Arab officials critical of the Islamic Republic.
In a letter signed by Paris police chief on 15 June and seen by Reuters said it could not allow the protest because of security concerns.
That ban came just days after the release of an Iranian diplomat convicted of masterminding a plot to bomb the group in 2018 and as Western powers seek to defuse tensions with Iran.
The court said the ban “excessively violated the fundamental freedom to demonstrate”. The rally will now take place near the French Foreign Ministry in central Paris on Saturday, for a limited period and be confined to one area. The protesters will also provide extra private security, the court said.
In a statement the NCRI welcomed the ruling, which it said denied Iran “the opportunity to exploit ‘security concerns’ under false pretences in order to suppress democracy and freedom of expression.”
France to halt bus, tram traffic on Friday night following riots - French interior minister
Friday 30 June 2023 15:23 , Eleanor Noyce
France‘s interior minister Gerald Darmanin has asked prefects in the whole country to exceptionally halt public transport with busses and trams from 2100 local time, his office confirmed when asked by Reuters following local media reports.
The move is part of a bundle of measures to ease tensions after heavy riots erupted throughout the country following the killing of a 17-year-old by a police officer.
Bus and tram traffic halted across France on Friday night
Friday 30 June 2023 15:16 , Eleanor Noyce
The French interior minister has asked local prefects across the whole of France to halt all bus and tram traffic on Friday night following widespread riots, Reuters reports.
More follows...
Fear of no end to riots across France after police killing of teen: ‘It’s getting worse and worse’
Friday 30 June 2023 15:00 , Eleanor Noyce
France is considering “all options” to restore order after rioters torched cars and buildings and looted shops across the country, in a third night of violent anger over the police killing of a teenager during a traffic stop in a Paris suburb.
President Emmanuel Macron, who has so far resisted growing calls to declare a state of emergency, arrived in Paris from Brussels after leaving a European Union summit early to attend a second cabinet crisis meeting in two days.
Anthony Cuthbertson reports from Nanterre, the Paris suburb where 17-year-old Nahel was shot dead:
Fear of no end to riots in France after police killing of teen: ‘It’s getting worse’
French city of Marseille bans protests this Friday after latest riots in France
Friday 30 June 2023 14:43 , Eleanor Noyce
Marseille, France‘s second-largest city, has decided to ban public demonstrations this Friday after last night’s latest riots in France, said the local authorities for the city.
All public transport in Marseille will also stop as from 7pm local time this Friday.
Recap: Where are the riots in France and why are they happening?
Friday 30 June 2023 14:30 , Matt Mathers
The 17-year-old, identified as Nahel, was driving a car on Tuesday morning when he was pulled over for breaking traffic rules, prosecutors said. The teenager was too young to hold a full driving license in France.
Police initially reported that one officer had shot at the teenager because he was driving his car towards him. But this version of events was quickly contradicted by a video circulating on social media.
On Thursday, The Nanterre prosecutor said that witness statements, CCTV video footage, amateur video footage, and statements from police offers were being used to piece together the timeline of events from Tuesday morning.
Chris Stevenson reports:
Where are the French riots and why are they happening?
Macron: Keep teenagers at home tonight, president urges parents
Friday 30 June 2023 14:02 , Matt Mathers
Emmanuel Macron is urging parents to keep teenagers at home to quell rioting spreading across France and says social media is fuelling copycat violence.
After a second crisis meeting with senior ministers, the French President said on Friday that social networks are playing a "considerable role" in the spreading unrest triggered by the deadly police shooting of a 17-year-old boy.
He said he wants social media such as Snapchat and TikTok to remove sensitive content and that violence is being organised online.
Of young rioters, he said: "We sometimes have the feeling that some of them are living in the streets the video games that have intoxicated them."
In pictures: Clean-up operation after third night of violence
Friday 30 June 2023 13:35 , Matt Mathers
Tram set alight during unrest
Friday 30 June 2023 12:45 , Matt Mathers
Overnight videos on social media showed urban landscapes ablaze across the country. A tram was set alight in the eastern city of Lyon and 12 buses gutted in a depot in Aubervilliers, northern Paris.
The facade of the adjacent Aubervilliers aquatic centre, where training will take place for the Olympics in 2024, was slightly damaged in the fire, SOLIDEO - the company in charge of the Games’ infrastructures - told Reuters.
In Nanterre on the city’s outskirts, protesters torched cars, barricaded streets and hurled projectiles at police following an earlier peaceful vigil held to pay tribute to the dead boy.
In the Chatelet Les Halles shopping mall in central Paris, a Nike shoe store was broken into, and several people were arrested after store windows were smashed along the adjacent Rue de Rivoli shopping street, Paris police said.
Transport Minister Clement Beaune told RMC radio early on Friday he did not rule out shutting down the capital’s public transport network.
A source told Reuters that several Casino supermarkets were looted across the country.
Government to examine ‘all options’ to quell unrest
Friday 30 June 2023 12:15 , Matt Mathers
France’s government was set to examine "all options" for restoring order on Friday after nationwide unrest escalated overnight into the most destructive rioting since police shot and killed a teenager at a traffic stop.
President Emmanuel Macron was en route to Paris from Brussels after leaving a European Union summit early so he could attend a second cabinet crisis meeting convened in two days.
The government would examine "all options" for restoring order, Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne said, calling the violence "intolerable and inexcusable" in a tweet.
"The priority is to ensure national unity and the way to do it is to restore order," she later told reporters during a visit to a Paris suburb.
Who is Nahel M? The teen shot dead by police in France
Friday 30 June 2023 11:47 , Matt Mathers
Nahel’s last name has not been released by authorities or his family. His mother has called for a silent march on Thursday in his honour in the square where the teenager was killed.
"I lost a child of 17-year-old, they took my baby," the mother, who has not been named, said in a TikTok video.
"He was still a child, he needed his mother. This morning he gave me a big kiss and told me he loved me. I told him be careful and I loved him."
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar reports:
Who is Nahel M? The teen shot dead by police in France
People in France becoming ‘afraid’ over ‘increasing violence’
Friday 30 June 2023 11:28 , Matt Mathers
People in France are becoming “afraid” due to the “increasing violence” on the streets after the police killing of Nahel M.
Amina Kalache, a journalist who lives in the district where the teenager was shot dead, said the unrest got more intense on Thursday night.
More comments from Ms Kalache below:
"People are very afraid now."
Amina Kalache, a journalist in Nanterre, tells us what she's seen as unrest has erupted across France.
Read more: https://t.co/gYOWrAtx9P
📺 Sky 501, Virgin 602, Freeview 233 and YouTube pic.twitter.com/59y8KFJWn9— Sky News (@SkyNews) June 30, 2023
UN says France fatal shooting an opportunity to address racism in law enforcement
Friday 30 June 2023 11:14 , Matt Mathers
The United Nations rights office said on Friday it was concerned by the fatal shooting of a teenager by police that triggered unrest across France.
"This is a moment for the country to seriously address the deep issues of racism and racial discrimination in law enforcement," spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani said.
"We also emphasize the importance of peaceful assembly. We call on the authorities to ensure use of force by police to address violent elements in demonstrations always respects the principles of legality, necessity, proportionality, non-discrimination, precaution and accountability."
Macron goes to Elton John gig as Paris burns in mass protests
Friday 30 June 2023 10:25 , Matt Mathers
Emmanuel Macron has sparked anger by attending an Elton John concert in Paris as riots raged in France over the police killing of a teenage delivery driver.
Footage showed him tapping his foot along to the 76-year-old pianist as he performed hits such as “Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting” and “Burn Down the Mission”.
Andy Gregory reports:
Macron goes to Elton John gig as Paris burns in mass protests
Watch: Looted Paris shops in ruins amid riots
Friday 30 June 2023 10:19 , Matt Mathers
A video shows shops in Paris ruined after a third night of violent protests over the police killing of a teenager.
Protesters erected barricades, lit fires and shot fireworks at police in French streets overnight as tensions grew over the deadly police shooting of a 17-year-old.
Overnight protesters lit a fire at the city hall of the suburb of Clichy-sous-Bois and set a bus depot ablaze in Aubervilliers.
Shops were also looted and damaged during the unrest
Clean-up operation underway
Friday 30 June 2023 09:19 , Matt Mathers
The clean-up from yesterday’s riots in Nanterre is underway. It’s the third morning in a row for municipal workers here, with one telling me he expects to be back again tomorrow morning, Anthony Cuthbertson reports from Nanterre.
Dozens of shopfronts are smashed up, with one bank completely gutted by arsonists. Some fires are still smouldering, and one street alone has six burntâout cars lined up on one side.
"We closed early yesterday, expecting trouble," says Pascal Mitieus, as he picks broken glass from the shattered windows of his salad shop.
"It was calm when I left but by 4pm it had turned to hell. It’s getting worse and worse. It’s become completely out of control."
Despite the mess it’s remarkably peaceful here this morning. A few feet from a burned out carousel a man is fishing in the lake, which protesters were using yesterday to wash teargas off their face. "I missed all that," he says. "I was sleeping."
Unrest in pictures: Violent protests break out across France
Friday 30 June 2023 08:53 , Matt Mathers
Fireworks explode as policemen stand by during protests in Roubaix, northern France.
Police stand by as material explodes in the Cite Pablo Picasso area of Nanterre, north-west of Paris.
A firefighter puts out a fire during protests in Lille, northern France.
People look at burning tyres blocking a street in Bordeaux, south-western France.
Riot police officers charge at youths during a demonstration in Paris.
Schools, town halls and police stations targeted in protests
Friday 30 June 2023 08:43 , Matt Mathers
Schools, town halls and police stations were targeted by people setting fires, and police used tear gas, water cannons and dispersion grenades against rioters, the spokesperson said.
Interior minister Gerald Darmanin on Friday denounced what he called a night of "rare violence".
His office described the arrests as a sharp increase on previous operations as part of an overall government efforts to be "extremely firm" with rioters.
The government has stopped short of declaring a state of emergency - a measure taken to quell weeks of rioting around France that followed the accidental death of two boys fleeing police in 2005.
Where is Nanterre?
Friday 30 June 2023 08:24 , Matt Mathers
Nanterre, where Nahel M was killed, is a working-class district about 11km northwest of Paris city centre.
Protests erupted there after the 17-year-old was shot dead by a police officer and have since spread to the capital and other parts of France.
It has a population of around 95,000.
200 officers injured during clashes
Friday 30 June 2023 08:08 , Matt Mathers
At least 200 police officers were injured during clashes last night, authorities have said.
Fireworks and other missiles were thrown at officers deployed to quell unrest.
Armored police vehicles rammed through the charred remains of cars that had been flipped and set ablaze in the northwestern of Nanterre, where a police officer shot the teen.
On the other side of Paris, protesters lit a fire at the city hall of the suburb of Clichy-sous-Bois and set a bus depot ablaze in Aubervilliers.
The French capital also saw fires and some stores ransacked.
Macron to hold second crisis meeting
Friday 30 June 2023 07:45 , Matt Mathers
French president Emmanuel Macron will hold a new government emergency meeting later on Friday after riots erupted for the third night in a row across the country in protest over the deadly shooting of a teen by police earlier in the week, reported BFM TV, citing the Elysee palace.
The meeting will take place at 1100 GMT, added BFM TV.
On Thursday, Mr Macron described the fatal shooting as “inexplicable and inexcusable” – saying “nothing justifies” a young person being killed
More below:
Macron calls fatal shooting of teenager by police ‘inexcusable’
Recap: Where are the French riots and why are they happening?
Friday 30 June 2023 07:41 , Matt Mathers
The 17-year-old, identified as Nahel, was driving a car on Tuesday morning when he was pulled over for breaking traffic rules, prosecutors said. The teenager was too young to hold a full driving license in France.
Chris Stevenson has more:
Where are the French riots and why are they happening?
Nearly 700 people arrested across France as violence continues for third night over teen’s killing
Friday 30 June 2023 07:39 , Matt Mathers
At least 667 people across France were arrested till Friday as Paris and other parts of the country burned for the third consecutive night over the killing of a 17-year-old boy.
Riots broke out in and around the Paris suburb of Nanterre, where the teen of North African descent, identified as Nahel M, 17, was shot during a traffic check.
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar reports:
At least 667 people arrested in France as violence continues for third night
Friday 30 June 2023 07:32 , Matt Mathers
Good morning and welcome to The Independent’s coverage of riots in France.
More than 600 people were arrested across the country in a third night of violent protests over the police killing of Nahel M.
We’ll bring you the latest updates on this story as they come in throughout the day.
