Interior Minister Laurent Nunez ordered a pause on stun grenades during the high-school protests after a 15-year-old lost a hand in Lens on Monday. He said 18 incidents had been sent to the police inspectorate.
France said on Wednesday it was pausing the use of stun grenades while policing student protests, after a 15-year-old boy lost a hand in Lens, Reuters reported from Paris. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said there was a strong possibility that a stun grenade fired on Monday caused the injury.
Nunez said he was suspending the weapons for the high-school movement until the Lens case was clarified. He said 18 incidents had been referred to the police inspectorate. The BBC reported that authorities said the boy picked up a grenade that then exploded, while students alleged an officer fired it at him.
The suspension is a change in policing tools, not an end to the protests. Reuters said school blockades were continuing and more marches were planned for Thursday. The BBC said Education Minister Edouard Geffray reported that 24 schools had been damaged badly enough to close for weeks, affecting 30,000 pupils.
Tuesday's marches drew more than 250,000 people by the interior ministry's count. The BBC said 488 people were arrested that day and 43 members of the security forces were hurt. Rights groups and some opposition politicians have accused police of disproportionate force. Police unions have said officers need non-lethal options.
No finding on who fired the Lens grenade, or how it detonated, was published in the reports used here.
People Sentiments Negative
- Laurent Nunez said he was suspending stun grenades until the Lens case was clarified.
- Students alleged the boy was hit directly; authorities said he picked up the grenade.