GRENOBLE, France (AFP) – Rioters opened fire and torched shops and cars in France's Grenoble city Saturday after police shot dead a suspected robber, forcing the government to vow a swift crackdown on "delinquents".
Youths torched between 50 and 60 cars in the southeastern city nestled in the French Alps as well as construction equipment and two shops in the early hours of the morning. Police said they made five arrests.
Interior Minister Brice Hortefeux visited the scene later Saturday and pledged to quickly restore order to the working class La Villeneuve neighbourhood.
"When I say quick, I mean immediately, that's how we are going to re-establish public order and the authority of the State," he told a press briefing.
"There is a simple and clear reality in this country: there's no future for hoodlums and delinquents because in the end the public authority always wins."
The rioting started after a memorial service for 27-year-old Karim Boudouda, who had died 24 hours earlier in a shootout with police after allegedly holding up the Uriage-les-Bains casino near Grenoble.
Shortly before midnight, a group of around 30 youths armed with baseball bats and iron bars attacked a tram in Boudouda's La Villeneuve district and forced the passengers out.
Police intervened and the youths began torching vehicles and attacking police who responded with tear gas.
