Macron struggles to control a divided nation as police fundraiser outstrips support for teen
French President Emmanuel Macron is aiming to reassert control this week after a sixth day of violent unrest following the police shooting of a teenager in Paris.
Mr Macron will host a meeting in the Élysée Palace on Tuesday with 220 mayors of towns affected by the rioting across France, the most serious in nearly 20 years, as he pledged “to begin a meticulous and longer-term work to understand in depth the reasons that led to these events.”
A 24-year-old firefighter died battling a blaze in the northern Paris suburb of Saint-Denis on Sunday night, but the riots appear to have peaked, with the number of arrests falling for a second consecutive night.
The turmoil was sparked by anger over the death of Nahel Merzouk, a 17-year-old of North African origin, whose family, along with community leaders, spoke out against wanton the vandalism and violence.
France’s Interior Ministry said on Monday that 157 people were arrested overnight, compared with 773 on Saturday night and 1,311 on Friday night. It added that 352 fires were recorded on public roads, 297 cars were torched and 34 buildings were burned. While three police officers were injured last night, compared with almost 50 on Saturday night, police have maintained a heavy presence, with 45,000 officers active overnight for the past three nights.
Mr Macron, who met with ministers last night to chart and hammer out a crisis response, was also set to meet the Presidents of the Senate and the National Assembly later on Monday. He also asked for a “massive presence” to remain on the ground to guarantee the “return to calm”, the Élysée said.
Justice Minister Éric Dupond-Moretti warned that authorities could be complacent about a return to violence. “No one is insensitive to the death of a young man,” he told France Inter radio this morning. “Naturally that leads to a lot of emotion, and with this emotion, anger. But ransacking a shop has nothing to do with this emotion.”
Mr Merzouk was filmed being shot at point-blank range by a police officer at a traffic stop in the Paris suburb, or banlieue, of Nanterre. The family of Mr Merzouk, whose funeral took place on Saturday, in Nanterre, have appealed for an end to the riots.
The Mayor of Nanterre, Patrick Jarry, on Monday thanked “all those who helped to stop this violence” in the past few days, including parents of students, educators, associative activists, as well as the rescue services, the police and firefighters. “Violence, as we know too much, mostly hurts young people and families in our neighbourhoods,” he said.
However, the country remains divided over both the shooting and the riots: an online fundraiser set up by far-right polemicist Jean Messiha for the police officer who killed Mr Merzouk has already topped €1m, far more than €180,000 raised for a separate fund to support the teenager.
