France

In a telling public statement, French police unions have characterized the protesters as “vermin” and “savage hordes.”By Bill Berkowitz ,  TRUTHOUT People look at burning tires blocking a street in Bordeaux, France, on June 29, 2023, during nationwide protests following the shooting death of a 17-year-old boy by the French police in a western suburb of Paris. Truthout is a vital news source and a living history of political struggle. If you think our work is valuable, support us with a donation of any size. The shooting of 17-year-old Nahel Merzouk, a young man of Algerian descent, during a traffic stop in a Paris suburb, has been characterized as a cold-blooded, point-blank execution and has catalyzed massive street demonstrations in cities across the country. Me...

BY PHILIPPE MARLIÈRE Street protest erupted in Nanterre, France after the police killing of Nahel M. The point-blank shooting of Nahel M, 17, in a Paris suburb by the police is only the latest in a spate of such deadly incidents in France. It is the third killing during a traffic stop this year. It follows a record 13 killings last year. Two weeks ago, in Angoulême (South-West France), a black man aged 19 was killed by the police in similar circumstances. The news did not make the headlines because no one was there to film the scene. In Nanterre (Paris region), a bystander filmed Nahel’s killing. The footage contradicts the police’s report which stressed that Nahel’s behaviour represented a “direct threat” to the two police officers on the ground. This account is fallaci...

Youssouf Traore was tackled by officers after he attempted to resist arrest Youssouf Traore gestures as he speaks to journalists in front of a police station in Paris, France, July 9, 2023 ©  AFP / Bertrand Guay A man arrested in Paris during a memorial protest for his brother said on Sunday that he will file a complaint against the officers who broke his nose and injured his eye. Video footage of the man’s arrest went viral amid heightened social tensions in France. Youssouf Traore was detained on Saturday after he allegedly hit a police officer during a prohibited gathering in memory of his brother Adama, who died in police custody seven years ago. Video footage of Traore’s arrest showed armored riot police approaching the 29-year-old after his alleged att...

While the battle over pension/retirement rights rumbles on in France with no sign of protesting workers becoming exhausted, as Macron was perhaps hoping for, the French police have again underlined their anti-worker, anti-poor, anti-immigrant reputation that they have justly earned throughout the yellow vest fuel price battles and various industrial and educational battles plus the current war on France’s streets waged against the masses by them on behalf of the French ruling class.  A 17 year old child, named only as Nahel, was shot at point-blank range on 27 June after allegedly failing to obey police officers who had told him to pull over in the west Paris suburb of Nanterre.  The media are reporting that this boy was driving without a licence but even the state prose...

Trash has piled up high on many of the streets of Paris, barricades still burn in the night across France as French workers carry on the fight to overthrow their government’s attack on their pensions.  French President Emmanuel Macron’s government pushed a bill to increase the retirement age from 62 to 64 through parliament without a vote in what he may proclaim that he wanted to be seen as a sign of his authority and determination to rule but in reality, showed only that he expected to lose any vote on the issue.  He has now stamped on the dragon’s tail and the ensuing flames of revolt may be impossible to put out while he remains in office. On many of the daily/nightly clashes, firefighters called out to douse the burning barricades, stand down and remove their h...