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Over 700 Arrested, 200 Police Officers Injured in French Protests turn Violent
More than 700 people were arrested and at least 200 police officers injured in France on Friday night as protests over the fatal police shooting of a 17-year-old turned violent.
The protests, which were the third night of unrest, erupted in cities across the country, including Paris, Marseille, and Lyon. Protesters set fires, threw rocks and Molotov cocktails at police, and erected barricades.
Police responded with tear gas and water cannons, and there were reports of widespread looting.
The interior minister, Gérald Darmanin, said that the government would be “extremely firm” with rioters. He said that 40,000 police officers had been deployed to quell the unrest.
The protests were sparked by the fatal shooting of 17-year-old Nahel Mazouz on Wednesday. Mazouz was shot by police in the Paris suburb of Nanterre after he allegedly refused to stop his car.
The shooting has sparked outrage in France, and there have been calls for an investigation into the circumstances of Mazouz’s death.
The protests have also come at a time of heightened tensions between police and minority communities in France. In recent years, there have been a number of high-profile cases of police brutality against minorities, and these cases have led to widespread protests.
The government has said that it is committed to addressing the issue of police brutality, but it remains to be seen whether the protests will lead to any concrete changes.