Over 100 arrested in France during 3rd night of protests after fatal police shooting
Written by ABC Audio ALL RIGHTS RESERVED on June 29, 2023
(PARIS) — Widespread protests continued for a third night over the fatal police shooting of a teenager in a Paris suburb.
More than 100 people have been arrested across the country so far, as curfews are in place in multiple cities, according to French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin.
Fourteen people were arrested after allegedly breaking into a flagship Nike store in Chatelet, in the heart of Paris, according to an official in the Paris Prefecture Office.
Some 40,000 law enforcement officers were deployed nationwide on Thursday to quell potential violence, including about 5,000 in the capital and its inner suburbs, according to Darmanin.
Riots are also taking place in Brussels, Belgium, in response to the teen’s killing, with some protesters allegedly attacking police, federal police told ABC News. Eight people have been arrested so far, police said.
Dozens of police officers are currently deployed in the city center of Brussels, and two subway stations have been closed.
The unrest comes after a 17-year-old driver was shot and killed by a police officer during a traffic check in Nanterre on Tuesday morning. The officer was detained on suspicion of manslaughter amid an ongoing investigation into the incident, according to the local prosecutor’s office.
The Nanterre prosecutor said Thursday that the officer did not meet the requirements to discharge his weapon and will remain in custody awaiting trial.
The shooting sparked violent protests, with police stations, schools and town halls “set on fire or attacked,” Darmanin said. More than 150 people were arrested around the country stemming from Wednesday night’s protests, according to Darmanin, who condemned the “night of unbearable violence.”
Lawyers for the victim’s family identified him as 17-year-old Nael M. and said they intend to file complaints against the officer who fired the lethal shot and another officer who was at the scene.
France’s Inspectorate General of the National Police, which investigates allegations of police misconduct, is also conducting a probe into the fatal shooting.
French President Emmanuel Macron and Darmanin have both called for “calm” as authorities investigate the teen’s death.
ABC News’ Aicha El Hammar Castano, Anna Rabemanantsoa and Morgan Winsor contributed to this report.
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