France riots: mayors hold defiant rallies amid uneasy calm

Paris, France Reuters Defiant gatherings were held outside town halls across France on Monday following a wave of rioting triggered by the fatal police shooting of a teenager of north African descent. Police made fewer than 160 arrests overnight, offering some relief for President Emmanuel Macron in his fight to reimpose order, just months after […]
France deploys 45,000 police after riots over teen’s death

Paris, France Reuters France’s interior minister said on Friday the coming hours would be decisive as he sent 45,000 police onto the streets following three nights of riots since an officer shot dead a teenager at a traffic stop in a working class suburb of Paris. The violence, in which buildings and vehicles have been […]
Updated: French riots spread in third night of unrest over police shooting

Updated: 12:10pm (AEST) Nanterre, France Reuters France saw unrest spread to major cities in a third night of riots on Thursday as President Emmanuel Macron fought to contain a mounting crisis triggered by the deadly police shooting of a teenager of Algerian and Moroccan descent during a traffic stop. Forty thousand police officers were deployed […]
After Paris suburb unrest, Macron deplores ‘inexcusable’ police killing of teenager

Paris, France Reuters French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday called the shooting dead of a 17-year-old by police during a traffic stop near Paris “inexcusable” in rare criticism of law-enforcement hours after the incident triggered unrest. A police officer is being investigated for voluntary homicide for shooting the youth, who was of North African origin. […]
In the US, Rev Al Sharpton delivers eulogy after police killing of Patrick Lyoya

RNS Rev Al Sharpton reminded mourners that Black people are created in God’s image at the funeral of 26-year-old Patrick Lyoya in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on Friday. “We were created in the image of God,” Sharpton said in his eulogy on 22nd April. “When you see us, you are seeing what God put together. And […]
In the US, Rev Al Sharpton calls for justice in police killing of Valentina Orellana Peralta

Los Angeles, US RNS Rev Al Sharpton, speaking at the funeral of the 14-year-old fatally shot by a Los Angeles Police Department officer, recalled coming to Los Angeles 30 years ago to protest the beating of Rodney King by police. “We keep seeing LAPD get it wrong. And here we are again. How long will […]
Updated: Gunman shot by police at NYC cathedral Christmas concert

7:45am (ADST), 15th December, 2020 New York, US AP A man was fatally shot by police on the steps of a landmark New York City cathedral Sunday after he began firing two semiautomatic handguns at the end of a Christmas choral concert, police said. The gunfire began just before 4pm at the Cathedral of Saint […]
In the US, Philadelphia shooting brings policing, racism back into campaign

Philadelphia, US AP The fatal shooting of another Black man on America’s streets by police – with subsequent unrest – has brought the fraught issues of policing and racism in the nation back to the fore of the presidential election in its closing days. Philadelphia police say Walter Wallace, Jr, 27, was shot earlier this […]
Anti-racism protesters rally in Kenosha, watched by National Guard reinforcements

Kenosha, Wisconsin, US Reuters About 1,000 people joined a mile-long march in Kenosha, Wisconsin on Saturday afternoon, chanting “Black Lives Matter” and “No Justice, No Peace” as National Guard units stood by to prevent a resurgence of violence that rocked the lakeside city earlier in the week. Jacob Blake, Sr, the father of the 29-year-old […]
In the US, police shooting of Jacob Blake prompts calls by faith leaders, Governor for reform

RNS Muslim and Christian leaders are decrying the police shooting of a Black man in Kenosha, Wisconsin, as authorities begin an investigation into the incident and the Governor calls for a special session of the legislature to address police accountability. The Council on American-Islamic Relations called for “immediate action” against the officers involved in the […]