France deploys armoured vehicles to stop riots as bus and tram services scrapped after three nights of devastation
30 June 2023, 17:05
France is deploying armoured vehicles to control riots after evening bus and tram services were halted.
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More police have been brought in to get a handle on furious demonstrations that broke out after a teenager of Algerian descent was shot dead by an officer.
Almost 1,000 people were arrested on Thursday as cars were set ablaze and shops were raided on the third night of devastation.
French prime minister Elisabeth Borne announced officers will deploy armoured vehicles.
"Additional mobile forces" will be brought in, she said, while "large-scale events binding personnel and potentially posing risks to public order" will be cancelled.
Interior minister Gerald Darmanin has told regional authorities to stop bus and tram services from 9pm local time.
He also requested that fireworks, petrol cans and flammable products be banned.
He said 3,880 fires broke out on public roads across the country on Thursday, and almost 500 buildings were also torched. Among those are schools and libraries.
French president Emmanuel Macron has urged for calm and told parents to stop their children joining the disorder, but has been criticised for dancing at an Elton John concert in Paris on Wednesday.
About 40,000 police have been deployed across France, with riots raging from Lille to Marseille, which banned public demonstrations.
Read more: Moment flagship Nike store in central Paris is ransacked by looters as wave of rioting sweeps France
At least 875 people were arrested on Thursday.
The riots broke out after a 17-year-old delivery boy named as Nahel M was shot and killed by an officer when he drove away from a traffic stop in Paris.
The officer has been charged with voluntary homicide and has apologised to the family.
But furious rioters have taken to the streets as it brought back to light issues around racial profiling and police relations with ethnic minorities.
