AT least 667 people have been arrested following a third night of protests in France, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin says.
He tweets to say that police and firefighters faced the “rare violence” that swept the country again last night with courage.
French cities woke up yesterday to damaged community centres, schools and city halls – places that symbolise the French institutions and state.
This morning, shopkeepers will be tallying up the damage of a night that saw rioters take aim at shops and supermarkets across the country.
French media report that in Paris, the looting focused on the central shopping street of Rue de Rivoli. More than a dozen people were later found carrying stolen shoes, bags and clothes and arrested, Le Parisien says. Small corner shops and jewellery stores were also broken into.
In the suburbs of the capital, supermarkets such as Carrefour were broken into.
In Roubaix, near the Belgian border, looters targeted a mini supermarket before setting fire to it.
In Marseille, shops and cafes were targeted too. The owner of a small restaurant in the southern city told BFMTV: “I am so sorry for the young man who died, but I don’t understand what my business has to do with it.”
And in Nantes, people reportedly drove a car into a Lidl supermarket before looting it.
From Lille in the north, to Marseille in the south, public buildings, shops and vehicles were attacked again last night.
In Roubaix, the residents of a bed-and-breakfast hotel were reportedly forced into the street after the building caught fire.
The trouble seems again to have been especially intense in the Paris region, with groups clashing with police in Nanterre and other suburbs.
The AFP news agency is reporting that some rioters used home-made grenades.
The third night of violence came after thousands gathered for a march in memory of Nahel through the centre of Nanterre.
France’s leaders know the risk that the death of the teenager could spark a wider rebellion against police, politicians and the state.
But despite attempts to calm the mood, and the use of elite police units and large numbers of extra officers, France’s government does not yet have the situation under control.
