Protests flare near Paris after 17-year-old shot dead during police traffic stop

Paris
CNN
—
France was bracing for further unrest on Wednesday evening following the death of a 17-year-old boy who was allegedly shot by police during a traffic stop.

The incident triggered violent protests in several suburbs of Paris overnight on Tuesday, during which 24 police officers were injured and 40 cars were set alight, French authorities say.

An extra 2,000 police officers were mobilized Wednesday afternoon in anticipation of the violence stretching into a second evening.

The officer who allegedly shot the teenager was put in custody on Tuesday after the boy, identified as Naël, died after being pulled over at a traffic stop in the Parisian suburb town of Nanterre. The officer will remain in custody for another 24 hours to undergo questioning by prosecutors, Nanterre prosecutor’s office told CNN.

French President Emmanuel Macron described as “unjustifiable” the fatal shooting of the youth, who was in the car, a Mercedes AMG, with two others at the time of the incident, prosecutors said.