THE GUARDIAN: President Macron cancels visit to Germany amid France’s worst violence for 18 years
The 17-year-old boy shot dead by a police officer was buried on Saturday as the French government braced for further protests after the worst violence for 18 years.
Friends and family attended a private funeral at Nanterre, where Nahel Merzouk was killed on Tuesday after being stopped by two motorcycle patrol police.
A large crowd gathered outside the local mosque and followed the coffin to the cemetery, many chanting “Justice for Nahel”. Lawyers for relatives had asked journalists to stay away from the ceremony, saying it was “a day for Nahel’s family” to mourn “with discretion”.
A 38-year-old police officer has been officially put under investigation – the equivalent in France of being charged – for voluntary homicide.
President Emmanuel Macron, who is facing the biggest challenge of his centrist government’s authority, cancelled a planned two-day visit to Germany on Sunday. The decision came after Macron faced criticism for attending an Elton John concert in Paris on Wednesday while the country burned. » | Kim Willsher in Paris and Montreuil | Saturday, July 1, 2023
Emeutes après la mort de Nahel M., en direct : 45 000 policiers et gendarmes déployés samedi soir, vives tensions à Marseille : Gérald Darmanin a annoncé des effectifs renforcés à Lyon et Marseille, théâtres de violences dans la nuit de vendredi à samedi. »
