A teenager lost his hand in France after a police grenade exploded during widespread student protests on Monday, amid mounting reports of violence by officers.
The 15-year-old boy was injured outside Auguste-Béhal high school in the northern town of Lens, in Pas-de-Calais, where riot police had been deployed after protesters reportedly threw objects at officers.
It is not yet clear what type of grenade it was or exactly how it caused the injury. A police union source told AFP the boy appeared to have picked it up, but a girl reportedly standing nearby told regional newspaper La Voix Du Nord this was false.
“I was there, I saw it. He didn’t pick it up,” she said.
Witnesses told Le Monde that riot police had pushed protesters back before throwing the grenade.
On 28 September, a police officer shot a tear gas grenade and struck a 14-year-old boy named Eden in the face at close range, Le Monde reported.
“Eden has a double jaw fracture, several of his lower teeth have been pulled out, and all his upper teeth are broken,” his lawyer, Elsa Marcel, told a press conference. His mother added that he can only consume liquids: “His jaw is sealed shut with just enough space for a straw.”
In another incident, a 16-year-old lost sight in one eye after reportedly being hit with a rubber bullet. An investigation is underway to clarify what happened.
In total, six judicial investigations into alleged police violence have been opened since a wave of student protests erupted at the start of the academic year over teacher shortages, overcrowded classrooms and poor school conditions. Students have described leaking classrooms, deteriorating buildings and going months without teachers.
Education minister Édouard Geffray said 190 students had been injured since the protests began, while the Interior Ministry reported 650 injuries among police officers, including a female officer who was chased and kicked. Seventy-eight school staff members have also been injured. The figures do not distinguish between serious and minor injuries.
Prime minister Sébastien Lecornu said student grievances were “legitimate” and promised action on teacher shortages, school repairs and overloaded timetables, with some pupils starting as early as 8am and finishing as late as 6pm. Unions say the government needs to reverse cuts to education rather than offer limited measures.
As many as 200,000 people were expected to join a national day of action on Tuesday, with 1,800 schools due to be blockaded as teachers, trade unionists and parents join demonstrations.
Parent groups, led by the Fédération des Conseils de Parents d’Élèves, the largest federation of public school parent associations, have also called on parents to join the protests.
The Union Syndicale Lycéenne, which represents high schools, said Tuesday that the number of people mobilising had reached a “new record”.
Amnesty International said: “Protests have been met with unnecessary and disproportionate force by police, including the unlawful use of tear gas grenades and rubber bullets. The Ministry of Interior announced that there have been more than 5,000 arrests of protesters and stated that 85 per cent of those arrested have been children.”
