Nahel Merzouk's grandmother calls for demonstrators across France to cease the civil unrest
As the civil unrest continues in France, one woman close to the reason protests ignited has a message.
Recently, Nadia, the grandmother of 17-year-old Nahel Merzouk, spoke with CNN’s affiliate BFMTV. During that time, she pleaded with demonstrators damaging property in light of Merzouk’s death. “They should not damage the schools, not break the buses. It was the moms who take the buses,” she said. “I’m tired.” The grandmother also noted that Merzouk’s mother “doesn’t have a life anymore.”
The French resident’s plea also comes as an assassination attempt was made on L’Haÿ-les-Roses Mayor Vincent Jeanbrun. The politician later released a statement, sharing that his Paris suburban home was attacked and set on fire. While Jeanbrun was at City Hall, his wife and young children were home then. “While trying to protect the children and escape the attackers, my wife and one of my children were injured,” he shared.
Over the past few days, France has received global attention after the police-involved shooting death of Merzouk. On June 27, an officer fatally shot the teen in the chest when he reportedly attempted to flee a traffic stop in Nanterre. An investigation into the incident has been launched, and the officer involved was placed on leave.
When asked why he shot Merzouk, the cop revealed he did so out of fear that the teen would hit pedestrians while attempting to flee. On Saturday (July 1), the family of Merzouk, who is of Algerian and Moroccan descent, laid him to rest at Mont Valérien. Yesterday (July 2), the French government shared that over 45,000 police and gendarmes were dispatched across France following the continuance of civil unrest. Per CNN, France’s Ministry of Interior Gérald Darmanin said 157 people were detained from overnight Sunday to early Monday (July 3) morning by authorities. Many of the individuals arrested were teenagers.
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