France Unrest: Record Number of Arrests, Riots Continue

By Staff, Agencies

More than 400 people have been detained in France on the third night of riots sparked by a fatal police shooting, several news organizations reported, citing sources in the Interior Ministry.

A total of 421 arrests were made, including 242 in the Paris area, according to reports from the early hours of Friday. Most of the detainees are between 14 and 18 years old, newspaper Le Figaro said.

“The record number of arrests reflect the firm orders issued by the minister to prefects and law enforcement agencies,” a source was quoted as saying by Le Figaro.

The reports came after additional 5,000 police officers, as well as heavily armed tactical units and armored vehicles, were deployed to quell violent protests and riots, which erupted on Tuesday evening in Nanterre, a western suburb of Paris, and have since spread to other cities.

Around 6,200 people, including 1,000 “troublemakers,” participated in protests in Nanterre alone, BFM TV reported, citing the Paris Police Prefecture.

People initially took to the streets to voice outrage after a 17-year-old man, identified as Nahel M., was killed by an officer during a traffic stop. The peaceful demonstrations quickly spiraled into violence, with rioters burning cars, shooting fireworks and throwing Molotov cocktails at police.

French President Emmanuel Macron condemned the shooting of the young man, while the officer who fired the shot was charged with homicide.