Riot in France: Hundreds arrested, more police and gendarmes injured
At least 667 people have been arrested after three nights of protests in France, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin is quoted as saying by the BBC. At the same time, according to the official, some 249 police and gendarmes were injured in last night's riots.
Shops were burned down and cars were looted in Paris, despite a heavy police presence. 40,000 officers were deployed across France.
French President Emmanuel Macron will hold another crisis meeting with ministers after calling the violence at the protest "unjustified".
A state of emergency grants the authorities special powers when the country's institutions are deemed to be "under threat". It allows the government to enforce movement restrictions and ban public gatherings and events.
Unrest in France began Tuesday after a police officer shot a 17-year-old driver who refused to stop for a traffic stop in the Paris suburb of Nanterre. Emergency services went to the scene, but Nahel, the driver, died shortly afterwards.
The officer who shot Nahel apologised to the family. He has been charged with voluntary manslaughter and his lawyer says he is "devastated".
