France mobilizes more than 45,000 police to respond to violent protests, jails rioters
About 50 radical protesters have appeared in court in Paris and Grenoble, France, for participating in a wave of riots after a minor of Algerian origin was shot dead by police during a traffic check.
French media quoted the Interior Ministry as saying that police have arrested more than 2,800 people since violent protests erupted across the country on June 27 over the death of Nahel Merzouk, a 17-year-old boy of Algerian origin in the Paris suburb of Nanterre.
About 20 riot suspects were put on summary trial in Nanterre on June 30. Most of them were teenagers with no previous criminal record, Le Monde noted.
Five suspects were charged with rioting, using violence against police, and damaging property. The defendants pleaded not guilty, but after just 15 minutes of deliberation, the court sentenced three to prison, one to a warning, and the other to acquittal. The defendant who received the harshest sentence was Amaury I., 22, who was found guilty of throwing rocks at police officers from the roof of a construction site.
Authorities are expected to hold more similar trials. France Info radio reported that three rioters in the southern city of Grenoble were sentenced to three to four months in prison. A total of 30 riot-related cases were heard in Grenoble on the morning of July 2.
On the same day, the grandmother of the victim Merzouk called on the protesters to stop the violence. A woman named Nadia told BFMTV: “They (protesters) should not damage schools, destroy buses because mothers still have to use this public transport.”
Ms Nadia said she felt exhausted, while Merzouk's mother was "lifeless" after her son's death last week.
The development comes as French authorities have deployed more than 45,000 police and gendarmes across the country to restore order on Friday night of rioting. According to CNN, the situation is considered less tense than on July 1, when there were only a few sporadic protests.
The Elysee Palace announced that President Emmanuel Macron will meet with the prime minister as well as the interior and justice ministers at 7 p.m. local time on July 2 to hear a report on the situation and discuss response measures.
