France… Hunting rifles and weapons were robbed in Marseille and Nanterre is preparing for Nael’s funeral
French police announced on Saturday 471 people were arrested across French soil last nightWhile cautious calm returned to the suburb of Nanterre, which is preparing for the funeral of the murdered boy, Nael, after clashes between protesters and the French police, during which a car was set on fire.
Simultaneously, the Intervention and Search Brigade, a special police security force, arrived in the suburb of Nanterre.
AndFrance has deployed 45,000 police and some vehicles on the streetsToday, Saturday, after French cities were subjected to riots for the fourth night in a row, due to the death of a teenager, who was shot by a police officer at a traffic light.
Clashes extended last night to the city of Grasse, southern France, where dozens of young men armed with iron bars gathered.
For its part, Marseille witnessed looting, including an armory from which hunting rifles were stolen, prompting the city’s mayor to appeal to the French authorities to send additional security forces to maintain public order and confront acts of violence and theft.
The incident of the French police killing of the 17-year-old Algerian, Nael, is still taking place in Paris. Anger is embodied in images of destruction and devastation in the outskirts of the capital, while a night curfew was imposed and public transportation stopped throughout the country tonight. Al-Arabiya and Al-Hadath correspondent also monitored intensive security preparations on the Champs-Elysées in Paris, for fear of an increase in riots in the country.
For his part, French President Emmanuel Macron condemned the exploitation of the teenager’s death to fuel violence and target state institutions.
Macron said during the Crisis Cell meeting on Friday: “There is an unacceptable exploitation of the death of a teenager, which we all deplore, and at this time it should be devoted to reflection and respect. In the face of this, I strongly condemn those who take advantage of this situation to try to create chaos and target our institutions. The responsibility that They bear it in full. I strongly condemn this unjustified violence that has no legitimacy.”
Macron also called on parents to assume their responsibility in controlling their children and keeping them at home. He added: “One-third of the people arrested last night were young people, sometimes very young. It is the parents’ responsibility to keep them at home. So it is important for everyone’s peace of mind that the parents exercise full responsibility, and I call for a sense of responsibility on the part of the parents. The state cannot take their place.”
French Minister of Justice Eric Moretti, in turn, said that a government decision had been issued calling on the judicial authorities to increase penalties for those responsible for the events, stressing that parents must assume their family responsibilities, otherwise they may be subject to legal accountability.
The French Foreign Ministry confirmed in a statement that the accusation of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to the police forces in France of racism or systematic discrimination is unfounded. Noting that France and its law enforcement forces combat racism and all forms of discrimination, the ministry made it clear that there is no room for questioning this commitment.
The violence, during which some buildings and cars were set on fire, in addition to the looting of some shops, put President Emmanuel Macron in the biggest crisis during his presidency since the yellow vest protests that erupted in 2018.
Unrest broke out across the country in cities such as Marseille, Lyon, Toulouse, Strasbourg and Lille, as well as Paris, where Nael M., a 17-year-old of Algerian-Moroccan origin, was shot dead by police on Tuesday in the suburb of Nanterre.
