French authorities have reported a decline in unrest and protests following the police-involved killing of a local teenager, but tensions persist on both sides.
According to the New York Times, mayors across the country have organized peace gatherings to protest violent attacks on elected officials.
The French Interior Ministry has stated that nearly 160 people were arrested and three law enforcement officers were injured, a significant decrease compared to previous days when over 1,300 people were detained.
French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin stated, “When you arrest 3,200 people, when the courts put people on trial, when you put on a show of republican force — a fair order, but an order, nonetheless — I think that has largely contributed to this return to calm.”
Darmanin also mentioned that fewer incidents were reported across the country, thanks to the deployment of 45,000 police officers and gendarmes for a third consecutive night.
These updates come one week after the initial outbreak of violence in response to the police shooting of Nahel Merzouk.
Merzouk, a 17-year-old French citizen with North African heritage, was fatally shot by a police officer during a traffic stop in Nanterre, a suburb of Paris.
The officer who fired the shot, whose identity has not been disclosed, is under formal investigation and has been detained on charges of voluntary homicide.
The French protests in response to Merzouk’s killing are reminiscent of the unrest and protests that took place in the United States during the summer of 2020 following the death of George Floyd. Floyd died after former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for over nine minutes.
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