France opens ‘attempted murder’ probe into petrol bomb attacks on police

No arrests made after several security officers were reportedly injured during incidents at Saturday’s protests.

Police in riot gear confront protesters in the La Plaine neighbourhood of Marseille on Saturday [AFP]

Prosecutors in France have launched an investigation into attempted murder after petrol bombs were thrown at security forces during protests in Paris, as video of an officer in flames provoked outrage.

The probe announced on Sunday came after the Paris police prefecture said several hundred rioters had attacked security forces with projectiles, including a Molotov cocktail.

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On Saturday, clashes erupted in Paris and other cities as hundreds of thousands of people staged a third weekend of protests against soaring living costs and deteriorating public services.

Video and images from the demonstrations showed a homemade incendiary device exploding at the feet of a security officer in protective gear, engulfing his lower body in flames.

Prosecutors said the investigation was opened for “attempted murder of persons vested with public authority”.

“Explosive devices were thrown at around 15 gendarmes as well as police officers,” the prosecutor’s office said, referring to military police officers who are part of the French armed forces.

While riots were less widespread than two weeks ago , when France experienced some of its worst unrest in years, Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said on Saturday that the level of violence perpetrated by some was “extraordinary”.

An assessment of the injured was ongoing, prosecutors said, adding that the reported injuries included second-degree burns.

No suspects arrested yet

The gendarme struck said his unit was “under assault”, with glass bottles, paving stones, shards of glass and firebombs thrown at them.

“We were hit by several significant incendiary devices,” he told broadcaster RTL on condition of anonymity.

“The flammable substance was so greasy that I could feel it spreading across my skin,” he said. “I kept wondering when it would stop because I really felt as though I had been coated by the heat itself.”

The officer, who received minor injuries, said the leg and shin protections on his riot uniform melted.

The gendarmerie said 13 members of the officer’s unit were injured, according to RTL.

No suspects “have been arrested at this stage in connection with the incident”, the prosecutor’s office said, adding that investigators were working to identify those responsible.

More than 770 people were arrested across France, the interior ministry said.

A total of 159 members of law enforcement were injured during protests and Halloween celebrations, it added.

The protests come in a tense political climate, with presidential elections six months away and far-right frontrunner Marine Le Pen vowing to restore law and order if elected next year.

Le Pen, the leader of the far-right National Rally party, said on X that those responsible for the firebomb attack must be “punished with the utmost severity”.

据报道，周六的抗议活动中有多名保安人员受伤，但无人被捕。

周六，防暴警察在马赛拉普兰区与抗议者对峙 [法新社]

在巴黎的抗议活动中，有人向安全部队投掷汽油弹，一段警察被火焰吞噬的视频引发众怒，法国检察官已对这起谋杀未遂事件展开调查。

周日宣布的这项调查是在巴黎警察局称数百名暴徒用包括燃烧弹在内的投掷物袭击安全部队之后进行的。

问题 1/4：为什么法国难以满足学生的要求？

问题 2（共 4 个）：为什么法国青年会发动暴乱？

法国严阵以待，应对万圣节抗议活动中可能发生的“极高风险”骚乱（共4条，此为第3条）

法国抗议活动进入第三周，警方发射催泪瓦斯（共4条，此为第4条）

周六，巴黎和其他城市爆发冲突，数十万人连续第三个周末举行抗议活动，反对飙升的生活成本和恶化的公共服务。

示威活动的视频和图片显示，一枚自制燃烧装置在一名身穿防护服的保安人员脚下爆炸，火焰吞噬了他的下半身。

检察官表示，此次调查是针对“企图谋杀具有公共权力的人员”展开的。

检察官办公室表示，“大约有 15 名宪兵和警察遭到爆炸装置袭击”，这里指的是隶属于法国武装部队的宪兵。

虽然骚乱的范围不如两周前那么广泛（当时法国经历了多年来最严重的动乱），但内政部长洛朗·努内斯周六表示，一些人实施的暴力程度“非同寻常”。

检察官表示，对伤者的评估仍在进行中，并补充说，据报道的伤情包括二级烧伤。

目前尚未逮捕任何嫌疑人。

遇袭的宪兵说，他的部队“遭到袭击”，有人向他们投掷玻璃瓶、铺路石、玻璃碎片和燃烧弹。

“我们遭到了多枚威力巨大的燃烧装置的袭击，”他在匿名的情况下告诉RTL电视台。

“那种易燃物质非常油腻，我能感觉到它在我皮肤上蔓延，”他说。“我一直在想它什么时候才能停止，因为我真的感觉自己好像被高温包裹住了一样。”

这名受了轻伤的警官说，他防暴制服上的腿部和胫骨护具都被融化了。

据RTL报道，宪兵队称该警官所在部队有13名成员受伤。

检察官办公室表示，“目前尚未逮捕任何与该事件有关的嫌疑人”，并补充说，调查人员正在努力查明责任人。

法国内政部表示，全法国共有770多人被捕。

声明还补充说，在抗议活动和万圣节庆祝活动中，共有 159 名执法人员受伤。

抗议活动发生在紧张的政治氛围中，距离总统选举还有六个月，极右翼候选人玛丽娜·勒庞誓言，如果明年当选，她将恢复法律和秩序。

极右翼政党国民联盟的领导人勒庞在X电视台表示，必须“以最严厉的惩罚”对纵火袭击事件负责的人。