Four days of protest in France. President Macron postpones state visit to Germany amid internal crisis
Violent protests in France have continued for a fourth consecutive night. French authorities say around 1,300 people were arrested last night and 79 police officers were injured. At the same time, almost 500 buildings were burned or damaged and more than 2,000 vehicles were set on fire. President Macron postpones his state visit to Germany amid the domestic crisis.
Last night, French President Emmanuel Macron called an emergency meeting in which several measures were adopted, including the temporary suspension of public transport and a ban on public gatherings.
Friday night saw the harshest scenes of looting and clashes between protesters and police in the southern port city of Marseille. Hundreds of young people, most of them minors, marched into the city centre and the chaos lasted late into the night. In all, 100 people were detained and 31 police officers were injured.
Respectively, the morning was unlucky for several shop owners, who found their businesses destroyed.
"It hurts my heart to see people working and seeing their equipment broken. Cars burned, people take out loans, they don't even have anything to eat, they buy cars on credit to go to work and someone gives them a car," comments a resident of Marseille.
"I noticed broken windows this morning. Too bad, we've had enough. It's unacceptable. We're lucky they didn't manage to break in completely. It's unacceptable, it's disgusting, I don't even have words, I find it very shameful", says a Marseillaise.
Nanterre, the western outskirts of Paris where young Nahel was killed, has been the epicentre of rioting, but other suburbs of the capital and other provincial cities - Toulouse, Lyon, Strasbourg, Lille, etc. - have also been the scene of urban violence. Here, too, vehicles have been set on fire, dozens of shops have been looted and buildings damaged.
Vox: "It's sad what happened to young Nahel. But why are we being treated like this? At this point, I'm tired, because I didn't sleep all night. We are tired.";
"There's a trigger for all this. The explosion, the spark that set everything ablaze. It's more a general social frustration. The fact that young people have nothing to do. Most of them don't have jobs. In fact, we're not even surprised by the hatred that's going on."
French authorities have banned the sale of fireworks, flammable and chemical products. Demonstrations and mass events have also been banned in major cities such as Lyon, Marseille and Strasbourg.
Protests began on Tuesday after police shot dead a 17-year-old Algerian teenager. He died shortly afterwards from his injuries, despite help from the emergency services.
The incident sparked anger and violence among French people. The 38-year-old police officer suspected of the fatal shooting is being questioned by the National Police Inspectorate as part of an investigation into voluntary manslaughter and his pre-trial detention has been extended.
