Large demonstrations in Paris, French cities and the police arrest hundreds of protesters
The French capital, Paris, and many cities witnessed mass demonstrations last night, in protest against the violence and racism of the police and security services, despite the deployment of 45,000 policemen and security personnel, backed by armored vehicles, to contain and suppress the protests.
“The police arrested 322 people in France, based on a provisional toll, including 126 in Paris and the western suburb of Nanterre, 56 in Marseille and 21 in Lyon,” the news agency AFP quoted the Interior Ministry as saying in a statement.
The Champs Elysees in Paris and the cities of Marseille, Strasbourg and Nice witnessed violent clashes for the fifth day in a row, in which the police used armored vehicles and tear gas to disperse the demonstrators.
The demonstrations were the result of the death of a a 17-year-old boy who was killed by a policeman at a traffic checkpoint in the suburb of Nanterre on Tuesday morning.
O. al-Mohammad