PARIS OLYMPIC GAMES
The burial of a French teenager whose death at the hands of police kickstarted protests across France took place in the north-west of Paris on Saturday.
French President Emmanuel Macron has postponed a state visit to Germany on Sunday because of the unrest. Earlier he described Nahel’s death as “inexplicable and unforgivable”.
The funeral began at 11am local time near Nanterre, where Nahel M aged 17, lived and was shot dead on Tuesday. He was to be buried at the Mont Valerien cemetery after prayers at Ibn Badis mosque.
The service was private and lawyers for Nahel’s mother asked the media to stay away.
Nahel was fatally shot after being stopped by police for driving a car in the bus lane. His death have prompted the worst riots in France since 2005, when two boys of African origin were killed in a police chase. More than 1,300 people were arrested on Friday night alone after incidents in cities across the country.
Early on Saturday, firefighters in Nanterre extinguished blazes set by protesters that left scorched remains of cars strewn across the streets. In the neighbouring suburb of Colombes, protesters overturned bins and used them as makeshift barricades.
The violence was spread across the country.
Looters broke into a gun shop and took weapons in the Mediterranean port city of Marseille, police said. Officers there arrested about 90 people as groups of protesters set cars on fire, broke shop windows and began looting.
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