French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday June 4, convened a gathering of numerous French officials with the aim of delving into the underlying factors contributing to the outbreak of riots. This follows the tragic incident of a teenager’s death by a police officer during a traffic stop.
Overnight violence in French cities had halved in 24 hours, the interior ministry said, with 72 people arrested overnight nationwide.
That included 24 arrested in and around Paris, where the riots first broke out.
Police mobilization had been kept at the same level as the two previous nights, at 45,000 across France.
Mayors across France had held rallies Monday calling for an end to the violent clashes.
Their call for a “return to republican order” came after the home of the mayor of a Paris suburb was rammed with a burning car, prompting widespread outrage.
Just under 4,000 arrests have been made since Friday, including more than 1,200 minors, according to justice ministry figures.
Macron raised the idea of handing out quick-fire fines to the parents of children caught for vandalism or robberies.
French businesses were meanwhile counting the cost of the seven nights of rioting, which left countless shops and other outlets vandalized.
Employers’ organizations called on the government to create an emergency fund “for those who lost everything”.
Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said Tuesday the government may allow businesses in the riots to suspend tax and social security payments as they rebuild.
Police meanwhile said it questioned one of the passengers in the car driven by Nahel M., who had turned himself in, to find out more about the exact circumstances of the shooting.
Khalil Wakim, with AFP
