The mayor of L’Aigle in Normandy, Philippe Van-Hoorne, expresses his surprise at the incidents in his small town, saying, “In the press and even on the TV news, it was mainly Paris and its suburbs, Lyon, and Marseille that were talked about. But when you look, there were also incidents in a certain number of small communities… Unfortunately, the increase of uncivil behavior, of violence, is developing even in modest towns like ours… It’s very hard to solve.”
Rioting spreads throughout France
According to the government’s estimate, more than 500 cities, towns, and villages were affected this time after the police shooting of Nahel Merzouk in the Paris suburb of Nanterre on June 27. The tragic death of the 17-year-old of North African descent resulted in nationwide outrage.
The scale of destruction across the country is staggering, with over 6,000 vehicles and 12,400 trash bins set ablaze, more than 1,100 buildings attacked, and numerous police officers injured.
It is estimated that over 1,300 rioters were arrested in the last 10 days.
