Paris: In Nanterre, a working-class suburb of Paris, protesters set cars on fire and fired fireworks at police on Wednesday. This was the second night of unrest in the area after a 17-year-old boy was fatally shot there during a traffic stop.

In the ethnically diverse suburbs of France's largest cities, there is a pervasive perception of police brutality that has been fueled by the use of lethal force by officers against the teenager, who is of North African descent.

Just before midnight, fireworks fizzed at police lines on Nanterre's Avenue Pablo Picasso, leaving a trail of burning wrecks in their wake.
Unrest also occurred in Amiens, Dijon, and the Essonne administrative department in the south of France, as well as in Lille, a city in the north, and Toulouse, a city in the southwest.

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Instances were reported in numerous other places throughout the greater Paris area, according to French media. The Montreuil town hall, located on the eastern edge of Paris, was shown in social media videos to be the target of numerous fireworks.
President Emmanuel Macron had earlier described the shooting as "unexplainable and inexcusable."

For shooting the youth, a police officer is being looked into for voluntary homicide. He allegedly disobeyed a request to stop his car, according to the prosecution.
Calm has been requested, and according to the interior ministry, 2,000 police have been dispatched to the Paris area.

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Rights organisations claim that racism is institutionalised within French law enforcement, a claim that Macron has previously refuted.

One police officer is seen firing at the driver in close range as the Mercedes AMG begins to move away in a video posted on social media and confirmed by Reuters. According to the local prosecutor, he succumbed to his injuries shortly after.

"You have a video that makes it crystal clear that a police officer killed a 17-year-old boy. You can see that the shooting was unlawful, according to Yassine Bouzrou, the family's attorney.

The National Assembly observed a moment of silence during which Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne stated that the shooting "seems clearly not to comply with the rules."

According to the attorney, the family has filed a lawsuit alleging homicide, complicity in homicide, and fabrication of evidence against the officers.
A woman identified as the victim's mother requested a memorial march in Nanterre on Thursday in a video posted to TikTok. Come one and all, we'll lead a revolution for my son, she urged.

According to a national police spokesperson, Tuesday's killing was the third fatal shooting during traffic stops in France so far in 2023, down from a record 13 last year.
As of Tuesday, there had been three fatal shootings at traffic stops in France in 2023, compared to a record 13 the previous year, according to a national police spokesperson.
A Reuters count shows there were three such killings in 2021 and two in 2020, and that the majority of those killed since 2017 were Black or of Arab descent.
The death has sparked the sixth investigation by France's human rights ombudsman into incidents similar to it in 2022 and 2023.
The sixth investigation into incidents similar to this one in 2022 and 2023 has been launched by France's human rights ombudsman.
In a nation where senior politicians frequently refrain from criticising police due to voters' concerns about their security, Macron's comments were notably direct.

Two powerful police unions retaliated, arguing that the detained police officer should be treated as innocent until proven guilty.

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He has implemented policies intended to reduce urban crime, such as giving police more authority to impose fines, but he has come under fire from rivals who accuse him of being lenient towards drug dealers and minor offenders.
Some residents of Nanterre had expressed optimism that the unrest would end quickly before it broke out for a second night.

Revolting like we did yesterday won't change anything; we need to talk and discuss, said Fatima, a local.