Why France is Burning ???

Source: Aljazeera

France is grappling with escalating unrest as thousands of additional security forces are deployed for a second consecutive night. The turmoil erupted following the shooting and death of a 17-year-old driver, identified as Nahel M, during a routine traffic check near Paris on Tuesday. The teenager was shot at close range by police as he attempted to flee and subsequently crashed his vehicle. Parisian authorities reported sporadic instances of renewed violence, while Toulouse witnessed protesters setting fires and pelting stones at firefighters who were extinguishing the flames. Similar clashes between demonstrators and law enforcement occurred in the northern city of Lille.

 

In the town of Rennes, located in the west, around 300 people gathered to pay tribute to the deceased teenager. However, some individuals within the group resorted to lighting fires, prompting police intervention to enable firefighters to control the situation, according to local media accounts.

 

French President Emmanuel Macron condemned the shooting, describing it as "unforgivable." However, his comments drew criticism from police unions, who accused him of prematurely passing judgment on the officers involved. The Alliance Police union called for the presumption of innocence until guilt is established, while the rival Unité SGP Police accused political interventions of fueling "anti-cop hatred."

 

Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin announced legal action against France Police, a group that published a now-deleted tweet applauding the officers for shooting a "young criminal" and blaming the teen's parents for his demise, citing their alleged failure in his upbringing.

 

Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne also voiced her opinion, stating that the police intervention "clearly did not adhere to protocols." Nahel's mother, Mounia, posted a video on social media in which she expressed her grief and urged people to join a march in remembrance of her son. She emphasized that Nahel was still a child who depended on her care and love.

 

A crowdfunding campaign has been initiated in support of the police officer involved in the shooting incident that resulted in the death of Nahel.
Source: BBC

The officer involved in the shooting, who claimed to have acted out of self-defense due to feeling endangered, is currently in custody, facing charges of voluntary manslaughter. Nahel, reportedly from a French-Algerian background according to a neighbor, is the second person this year to be killed in a police shooting during a traffic stop. Last year, a record-breaking 13 individuals died under similar circumstances.

 

Human rights organizations have criticized a 2017 legislative amendment that expanded the circumstances in which officers are authorized to use firearms. Le Monde newspaper, citing official statistics, reported a consistent increase in the annual number of police shootings at moving vehicles since the amendment.

 

Campaigner Rokhaya Diallo highlighted the higher risk faced by people of color due to the increased number of shots fired. Reuters news agency discovered that a majority of victims of fatal police shootings during traffic stops since 2017 were black or Arab.

 

Initially, police suggested that the teenager drove his car toward them with the intention to harm them. However, footage posted online and verified by AFP shows an officer pointing his weapon at the driver through the car window and firing at point-blank range as the driver attempts to escape. In the video, a person can be heard saying, "You're going to be shot in the head," but it remains unclear who made the statement.

 

Source: Getty Images

At a press conference in Marseille, President Macron expressed his condolences to Nahel's family, stating that nothing justifies the death of a young person. He called for calm and emphasized the importance of justice being served swiftly as the case is referred to the courts.

 

To manage the potentially volatile situation in Nanterre, near the La Défense business district, and other Paris suburbs, where Nahel's killing has evoked strong emotions, authorities have initiated two separate investigations. One investigation focuses on the possibility of a killing by a public official, while the other examines the driver's failure to stop the vehicle and the alleged attempt to harm a police officer.

 

Paris police chief Laurent Nuñez acknowledged that the officer's actions raise questions but suggested that the officer may have felt threatened. The family's lawyer, Yassine Bouzrou, dismissed this as an illegitimate defense, citing the video evidence that clearly depicts the police officer killing the young man without justification. Bouzrou further revealed that the family has filed a complaint against the police for disseminating false information.