A police officer shot Nahel M. after pulling him over in a traffic stop Tuesday in Nanterre, a suburb of Paris. Videos of the incident went viral, sparking nationwide protests that spread from Paris to several major cities, including Marseille, Lyon and Toulouse.
More than 1,300 people were detained or arrested Friday night, according to the Interior Ministry, and 79 police officers were injured.
The ministry said that Friday night’s tensions were of “lower intensity compared with the previous night.” The government mobilized some 45,000 police officers overnight in anticipation of more unrest and ordered local officials to suspend bus and tram services. Much of France’s transportation network ground to a halt late Friday.
Some 45,000 police officers were mobilized overnight, and much of the country’s transportation network ground to a halt Friday evening after local officials were ordered to suspend bus and tram services overnight.
Some regions saw less violence than previous nights — but there were few signs of tensions dissipating in France’s most populous cities — including Paris, Lyon and Marseille — where rioters looted shops and set cars on fire.
The tensions have also spread overseas. On the island of Réunion, a French department in the Indian Ocean, authorities said dozens of people were detained for rioting on Friday night.
In Nanterre on Saturday, as Nahel M.’s funeral was underway, young men patrolled the neighborhood and chased journalists out of the area.
Protesters say their anger has been compounded by what they see as an attempted police coverup. Authorities have detained the officer suspected of shooting the teen and are investigating him for intentional homicide.
But the initial police narrative suggested the victim’s car had tried to plow into them. Video footage contradicted the police accounts, showing an officer who appeared to fire a shot as the car pulled away.
Many events scheduled for this weekend, including Marseille’s annual Pride march, were canceled or postponed. Macron’s scheduled visit to Germany on Sunday — which would have been the first state visit by a French president in 23 years — was postponed, a statement from the German president’s office said.
The embattled president has struggled to contain the unrest, calling attacks on government buildings “unjustifiable” while blaming social media and video games for stirring passions.
He has yet to fully address the calls for more accountability, including demands for tighter rules around when police officers can draw their weapons. Under a law passed in 2017, police can shoot at moving vehicles if an officer decides they are fatally dangerous to themselves or others.
The flare in tensions follows large-scale protests earlier this year over Macron’s unpopular push to raise France’s retirement age.
Clara Bolac, a 22-year-old student who in recent months took to the streets with millions of other protesters to oppose Macron’s policies, said she was surprised, but pleased, that Macron was quick to call the shooting “unforgivable.”
But Bolac said Macron now needs to address rioters’ anger that is rooted in a deep sense of injustice.
“In the suburbs, they fear the police every day,” she continued.
The difference this time, she said, is that “for once, it was filmed.”
Adela Suliman in London, Ruby Mellen in Washington and Emily Rauhala in Brussels contributed to this report.
