A riot broke out in Paris, France as the public expressed their anger over the heavy-handed treatment of the police to ethnic minorities during the coronavirus lockdown. The police used baton charges and tear gas in Villeneuve-la-Garenne, northern Paris, in the early hours of April 20 as fireworks exploded in the street. As groups of protesters congregated, several armed police were seen moving through the area.
Extension of lockdown
France's President Emmanuel Macron has extended the country's social distancing measures until May 11. The daily death toll from the coronavirus fell to the lowest level in three weeks on April 20 as 395 deaths were recorded, bringing the total to 19,718 but the deaths are usually under-reported over the weekend.
In the early morning of April 20, videos posted on social media showed the red fireworks in the sky. Bins were also filmed blazing and filling the morning air with smoke as armed police moved in to the area to break the crowd.
French journalist with Algerian background, Taha Bouhafs, posted the video of the riot and in the video it also showed him being manhandled by the police, thus leading to allegations of racism. The riot started after a 30-year-old was critically injured in the neighborhood in a collision with an unmarked police car. The friends of the victim, who have not been named, claimed the incident on the night of April 19 was an example of police heavy-handedness against ethnic minority communities during the lockdown.
The source said that the injured man comes from an Arab Muslim background and that he is now critical in the hospital and the people in the city reacted very badly to what has happened.
According to a local police spokesman, police and the reinforcements have been the target of rioters who have thrown fireworks and stones. The violence started in Villeneuve-la-Garenne and has spread to other towns and estates nearby.
Police brutality over lockdown
Last week, prosecutors in Béziers stated that the officers who are involved in the brutal attack of the 33-year-old Mohamed Gabsi are now facing criminal charges after he died while under the arrest for breaching the coronavirus lockdown. Three officers are now suspected of intentional violence by a public official leading to manslaughter and non-assistance of a person in danger.
The three officers involved in the attack can be imprisoned for 15 years or more, according to the local prosecutors. The case is very sensitive because the victim was a Muslim and Béziers, located in the south of France, is run by a far-right mayor who is supported by the National Rally party.
Mr. Gabsi suffered a heart attack by the time he arrived at a local police station and witnesses saw two officers sitting on top of him in their patrol car. The suspicious death of the victim is just one of the many complaints about police racism as forces across France enforce one of the strictest lockdowns in Europe.
A spokesman for the Human Rights League in France said that Mr. Gabsi's death is a scandal that shows how the poor are being killed by the lockdown. On April 14, France reported a total of 19,718 deaths from coronavirus since the start of the health emergency. More than 150,000 cases have also been detected in the country. France has been in lockdown from March 17, and it will be extended until May 11, 2020.
