Dozens of police and gendarmes injured overnight, says Interior Ministry
French police arrested as many as 1,311 people across the country as violent demonstrations over the police killing of a North African teenager continued for a fourth night, the Interior Ministry said on Saturday.
About 45,000 police officers backed by riot vehicles were deployed to quell the protests, which included setting fire to dumpsters, cars and damaging buildings.
Nahel Merzouk, a 17-year-old youth of North African descent, was shot at point-blank range by a police officer on Tuesday in the Paris suburb of Nanterre.
France’s police institutions have a well-documented history of systematic racism, many minorities routinely complain about heavy-handed police tactics, discrimination, and racism.
The officer faces a formal investigation for voluntary homicide and has been placed in preliminary detention.
The UN has also expressed concern about the fatal police shooting, urging France to address “deep issues of racism and discrimination” in its law enforcement agencies.