45,000 police were on duty, but there were violent riots and looting for the fourth consecutive night. The President of France cancels his visit to Germany. The Nahel who was shot was buried in the immediate family circle.
Riots broke out in several French cities for the fourth consecutive night. The Interior Ministry announced on Saturday that more than 1,300 people had been arrested. Because of the riots, President Emmanuel Macron canceled his planned visit to Germany. The riots were triggered by the death of a 17-year-old boy of North African descent. He was buried on Saturday with close family in Nanterre.
According to preliminary data from the Ministry of the Interior, 1,350 vehicles were set on fire across the country during the renewed disturbances on Saturday night, 234 buildings were set on fire or damaged and 2,560 fires were set on roads. 79 police and gendarmes were injured. A total of 1,311 people were arrested, significantly more than the previous night. Overall, however, according to Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin, the violence has subsided.
The riots in Marseille were particularly violent. Many people of North African descent live in France’s second largest city. According to the police, a fire broke out in a supermarket “in connection” with the disturbances. In the center of the southern French port city, young and often masked protesters hurled projectiles at police vans, and police used tear gas. Unrest also continued in Paris. According to authorities, the protesters are mobile, well-connected and often “very young”.
French authorities tightened measures again on Friday to bring the situation back under control. 45,000 police and gendarmes were mobilized, about 5,000 more than the night before.
Night curfew, traffic is stopped
In addition, from 21:00, buses and trams across the country were suspended and the sale of fireworks and flammable liquids was prohibited. Big events such as concerts were canceled and nighttime curfews were imposed in several places.
Despite the massive police presence, the situation in France is not under control. NACHO DOCE
In the greater Paris area, bus and tram traffic is to be closed again on Saturday night and nightly Metro service is to be reduced by an hour. In Marseille, all public transport must stop after 6 pm. All protest rallies were again banned. A fan club of the football club Olympique Marseille called on all young residents of the city to restrain themselves.
Macron cancels state visit to Germany
Macron wants to meet with mayors about the unrest. Some local politicians had already called for a curfew and police reinforcements to deal with the violent riots. The president had to stay in France for the next few days because of the internal political situation, the Élysée Palace and the Office of the Federal President announced on Saturday. Macron spoke to German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier by telephone and briefed him on the situation in his country, a spokeswoman for Steinmeier said. “President Macron has asked to postpone the planned state visit to Germany.”
Marseille Mayor Benoit Payan called on the government to immediately deploy additional security forces. “Scenes of looting and violence are unacceptable,” he wrote on Twitter late on Friday. In Lyon, France’s third-largest city, police used armored vehicles and a helicopter. The mayor there, Gregory Doucet, also called for reinforcements. In Paris, police cleared the Place de la Concorde, the largest square in the capital, on Friday night. A large number of people gathered there for a protest demonstration.
The outbreak of violence has plunged Macron and his government into the worst crisis since the start of the yellow vest protests in 2018. Macron has not yet ordered the imposition of a state of emergency – according to Darmanin, however, this is not ruled out. “We do not rule out any hypothesis and we will see what the President of the Republic decides after tonight”, he told TF1 on Friday night.
A burnt-out bus on Friday night. YVES HERMAN
Protests also in overseas territories and in Brussels
There were also riots in the French overseas territories: in Cayenne, capital of South American French Guiana, a man was killed by a ricochet on Friday night (local time) in connection with the riots, according to local authorities. According to media reports, the man was an employee of the local administration.
According to a report by the France-Antilles regional portal, there was also violence in the Caribbean overseas territory of Martinique on Friday night. About 20 to 30 hooded people threw stones at police in the capital, Fort-de-France. Garbage cans were set on fire in several places.
Burned cars. YVES HERMAN
Young people also gathered again in Brussels on Friday afternoon in response to the 17-year-old’s death. According to a police spokeswoman, they gathered in different locations after a call on social media. Meanwhile, around 50 people have been arrested pre-emptively, she said. Already on Thursday night there were clashes between young people and police in the Belgian capital.
Policeman in custody, countries urge caution
The unrest was sparked by the death of a young man during a police check on Tuesday. A motorcycle patrol in Nanterre, near Paris, stopped 17-year-old Nahel behind the wheel of a car. As the young man suddenly left, a deadly shot was fired from the officer’s service weapon. The incident caused consternation across the country, and France has been rocked by violent unrest ever since. The police officer responsible for Nahel’s death has been arrested. A formal manslaughter investigation was launched against him.
Many people from poor and multi-ethnic neighborhoods feel disadvantaged and neglected by the government. Complaints about police violence and racism have been piling up for a long time. The riots are reminiscent of street battles in 2005, which lasted for three weeks. At that time, two young men in Paris, fleeing the police, hid in a transformer house and died from an electric shock. President Jacques Chirac felt compelled to declare a state of emergency.
Austria, Germany, Britain and the United States had already warned their citizens with travel plans in France to be careful on Friday because of the unrest and updated their safety instructions. Hotel and catering industry association president Thierry Marx reported numerous booking cancellations.