With tears in their eyes, around fifty people gathered for a white march in front of the Hauts-De-Seine prefecture following the death of a 17-year-old minor. Nahel lost his life due to a shot by a police officer following a refusal to comply.
The death of young Nael arouses emotion and anger throughout France, the 17-year-old minor succumbed to the shooting of a policeman and the scene was entirely filmed.
Police sources claim that the vehicle drove into the police, however a video filmed by local residents, authenticated by AFP, shows one of the two officers holding the driver at gunpoint and shooting at point-blank range when the car restarts. This video plays a decisive role in the investigation. Nahel is shot in the chest and dies shortly after being hit.
“The shocking images (…) show an intervention which clearly does not comply with the rules of engagement of our law enforcement forces”, estimated Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne while President Macron denounced an “inexplicable” act. and “inexcusable”.
In Nanterre, the victim’s hometown, anger and indignation dominate. Throughout the evening of Tuesday, tensions erupted between residents and police, many fires were started in protest against these police methods generally reserved for disadvantaged young people in the suburbs. More than 1,200 police officers were mobilized around Paris to control the situation.
The policeman who fired the shot is in custody at the General Inspectorate of the National Police (IGPN), the police force. Nahel’s family lawyer has announced the filing of two complaints: the first accuses the author of the shooting by voluntary homicide and his colleague for complicity. The second against the police for forgery in public writing.
Deputies and members of the government established a minute of silence in the hemicycle of the National Assembly, in tribute to the teenager.
The clashes were the most violent, in Nanterre, “several public and private buildings, including schools, suffered significant and unacceptable damage, sometimes irreparable”, lamented the town hall, calling for an end to “this destructive spiral”.
In Nantes, a hundred people gathered in front of the police station chanting “Justice for Nahel”. In Lille, a hundred demonstrators also gathered in front of the prefecture against “police crimes”.
This case has reignited controversy over the action of law enforcement in France, where a record number of 13 deaths were recorded in 2022 after refusals to comply during roadside checks.
“I feel bad for my France. An unacceptable situation, ”wrote the star footballer of Paris-Saint-Germain (PSG) and captain of the French team, Kylian Mbappé, on Twitter.
Another French international, FC Barcelona defender Jules Koundé, lamented a “dramatic” situation. “May justice worthy of the name honor the memory of this child,” tweeted actor Omar Sy.
For his part, DJ Snake, the most listened to Frenchman in the world, wrote: “A mother is going to bury her son for a lack of license. History repeats itself again and again, when will it end? “, he wrote on his social networks.