France Deploys 40,000 Police Amid Fears Of More Violent Riots: All You Need To Know

Around 40,000 police will be deployed across France to stem any further protests over the police killing of a teenager that incensed the country, interior minister Gerald Darmanin said.

In Paris, 5,000 police personnel will be deployed as protests over the death of the 17-year-old, shot dead by police during a traffic stop turned violent.

French president Emmanuel Macron condemned the violent clashes and unrest saying that the acts of violence, which included attacks on and fires set to public buildings, were “unjustifiable.”

Here’s all you need to know about protests in France:

Around 150 people were arrested across the country in the second night of clashes.

Interior minister Gerald Darmanin denounced attacks on schools, local town halls and police stations.

Government spokesman Olivier Veran criticized the protests’ violent turn, saying, “The reactions from last night aren’t reactions that seek to fix or bring justice. They’re reactions that aim to attack the republic.”

Protests began after Nahel, 17, was shot at close range in Nanterre on Tuesday. Videos widely shared on social media showed two police officers leaning into a car with one of them shooting as the driver pulls away.

High-profile football stars, celebrities and political leaders have expressed outrage over the killing.

“A bullet in the head…It’s always the same people for whom being in the wrong leads to death,” French national team player Mike Maignan wrote on Twitter.