Macron holds crisis talks after unrest in France over teen shot dead by police

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French President Emmanuel Macron called a crisis meeting of ministers on Thursday after a second night of unrest in which a 17-year-old teenager was shot dead by police during a traffic stop.

Nearly 150 people were arrested in overnight clashes across the country, with 2,000 police officers deployed in the Paris suburb of Nanterre, where the incident took place on Tuesday, and other cities.

Mayors of smaller cities and suburbs, including Lille in northern France and Dijon in the east, reported incidents of people setting fire to government buildings.

Macron opened the crisis meeting by saying, “The last few hours have seen scenes of violence against police stations as well as schools, city halls and ultimately against institutions and the republic, and these cannot be justified at all.” ” Ministry of the Interior in Paris.

He further said that a planned march called for Thursday afternoon by the teenager’s grieving mother, who has appeared in several videos on social media since the shooting, should be a moment of contemplation and peace.

The death of a 17-year-old boy named Niel, who was of North African descent and was driving without a license when he tried to evade police at a traffic stop, has sparked protests in ethnically diverse areas outside the French capital and elsewhere I got angry. France where it was seen as another example of police brutality.

A Video Video filmed by a bystander was posted on social media almost immediately after the incident and showed a police officer shooting into the driver’s side window as the car sped off, while both officers were shot at. There was also no sign of immediate danger.

An officer involved has been taken into police custody for questioning. Prosecutors will hold a press conference on Thursday to give an update on the case.

Lawyers for Nael’s family have said they will file a lawsuit against the two officers involved.

The government is on high alert because a similar incident in 2005 turned into three weeks of protests. In Clichy-sous-Bois, another low-income suburb of Paris, two teenagers, Zayd Benna and Dwarf Traore, died while on the run from police.

The movement turned into a widespread criticism of the long-standing problems of high unemployment and crime plaguing low-income communities around Paris. According to government studies, such areas are home to many immigrants and their descendants, who face discrimination in employment and housing despite being French citizens.

Politicians of all political parties have taken serious note of the incident of teen driver being shot dead.

Left-wing leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon reiterated his frequent criticism of heavy-handed police tactics. Far-right leader Marine Le Pen criticized Macron for calling the death “unforgivable and inexcusable” before the investigation into the events was completed, while the head of her party, Jordan Bardella, defended the police, who described an “atmosphere of violence”. had to face

Thirteen people died in France last year after refusing to stop at police traffic controls, compared with seven in 2021, according to official police figures, although the total number of stops has also risen sharply. Some died because the police shot them and some died due to accidents during the escape.