Fires of public and private property, endangering the lives of others, confrontations with the police ... At the time of tribute to the nation but also to caregivers who risked their lives to save so many others, the evening of July 13 was marked by a series of urban violence not only affecting the suburbs of very large cities.
In Montbéliard (Doubs), police officers were targeted by fireworks, which could be fatal (two people killed in Alsace in 2013) or cause severe injuries and burns. An 18-year-old suspect was arrested. Same situation in Évreux (Eure), in particular in the district of the Madeleine known for its repeated problems (1994, 1998, 2002 and especially 2005), where eight mobile gendarmes who came as reinforcements were injured by projectile jets. A car fire also spread to a house from which the inhabitants had to be evacuated. Playing with matches, in this case with very dangerous firecrackers, can also threaten the lives of others. This may have been the case in Paris where a fire broke out in an apartment in the 13th arrondissement while residents of the area complained of untimely fireworks.
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A little everywhere in France, the testimonies abound of occupants of apartments having undergone such shootings. This threat is all the more present since the young delinquents have got into the habit of starting their "activities" several days before the national holiday, to the great exasperation of many inhabitants of their neighborhoods. Similarly, apart from the litany of "ordinary" urban violence, "festive" fire against the police tends to start earlier, as was the case on July 11 in Villeneuve-d ' Ascq and in Lille (Nord).
Wild fireworks
Accidental fires caused by wild fireworks also affect public property. In Nanterre, a gymnasium was burned down. The mayor of Nanterre Patrick Jarry (DVG) denounced "a very serious act" and said that the city was going to file a complaint. In Talant (in the suburbs of Dijon), the firefighters had to intervene not far from homes to put out a fire started by shots in brushwood. The mayor has announced that he will file a complaint.
The suburbs of the big cities, in this case the regions of Paris, Lyon and Lille, were the most affected. Cars were burned in Roubaix (Nord). Wild fireworks were observed in several districts of Lyon. Fires, car fires and mortar fire took place in Villeurbanne, Vaulx-en-Velin and Vénissieux. In Rillieux-la-Pape, groups of young people opposed the police with projectile jets and tear gas responses.
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But it is as always in the Paris region that we deplored the greatest number of facts. With, in addition to the gymnasium, a bus burnt down in Nanterre in the city Pablo-Picasso, known for its drug trafficking. According to the Hauts-de-Seine prefecture, "one or more individuals removed a driver from his bus before setting the vehicle on fire" . Also in the Hauts-de-Seine, Suresnes and Villeneuve-la-Garenne, marked by urban violence during confinement, were notably affected. Like Saint-Denis, Villetaneuse, Aubervilliers or Bobigny in Seine-Saint-Denis or even the 12th, 14th, 15th, 18th, 19th and 20th arrondissements of Paris.
If the Ministry of the Interior no longer publishes a report on this violence, more than fifty individuals have been arrested in Paris and elsewhere in Île-de-France with at least seven police custody in Paris. And at least four police officers were injured in the Yvelines and Essonne.
Tensions with the police during a demonstration by carers and "yellow vests" - Watch on Figaro Live
Beyond these urban violence, the clashes that were noted Tuesday in Paris, place de la Bastille, during a march organized at the call of caregivers unions and supported by the "yellow vests", suggest a busy comeback for the police.
