After two weeks of general unrest across the European country, protests have given way to outright riots and street fights in some 20 districts. The trouble initially started when a black man alleged that police anally raped him with a baton, sparking outrage. However, after the authorities filed charges against the officers involved, agitators exploited the news to instigate violence in Paris and beyond:
Police in Paris are struggling to cope with the fall out from a plague of riots which have kicked off in the city’s northern suburbs. The scandal, which has seen four police officers charged, sparked a series of legal protests. But a number a violent, illegal protests have also taken place, with trouble now nearing its third week.
Hundreds of cars have been torched, shops and banks smashed up, and even a disability vehicle was destroyed. A coach full of tourists from South Korea was targeted in northern Paris on Tuesday while a neighbourhood close to one of the busiest train stations in the city Gare Du Nord which houses the Eurostar train network was also hit.
EXPRESS
At least 20 different areas have seen violence and vandalism
Thousands of people have been protesting violently
Local reports suggest the popular Marais district in central Paris was also the scene of angry outbursts yesterday.The north central Île-de-France region has been rapidly deteriorating with police confirming the violence is getting worse each night, according to broadsheet Le Figaro.They also say those out in the streets appear to be teenagers as opposed to an older crowd who initially started the violence. “Police say 47 vehicles were burned on Valentines day compared to 34 on the 12th.
And 59 rubbish bins were torched compared to 21 on the same dates.
Scores of people have now been arrested after they went berzerk following the alleged rape and horrific abuse of a man identified as Theo on February 2.
Violence originally erupted in a council estate called Rose des Vents in Aulnay-Sous-Bois, which is also known locally as the ‘city of 3000’, over claims the Theo attack was racially motivated.
A judicial inquiry has now been launched into Theo’s arrest with CCTV footage being analysed after Prime Minister Francois Hollande stepped into the debate.
However the fall out from the incident shows no signs of abating as individuals use the internet and mobile messaging services to organise vicious protests each evening.”
Source: Express
