Riot police target protesters, France, June 2023. | Photo: Twitter/ @RFI

Paris, July 20 (RHC)-- French Justice Minister Éric Dupond-Moretti reported that authorities have handed down 1,278 sentences for the riots that occurred in late June and early July.  Approximately 95 percent of those sentences were convictions, that is, 1,056 people were sentenced to prison.  Among them are 742 citizens who must serve mandatory jail terms with an average length of 8.2 months.

"It was extremely important that there be a firm and systematic response. It was imperative that we restore republican order," Dupond-Moretti said.  The authorities also imposed sentences for using social networks to organize riots because they wanted to "remember that Snapchat is not a hiding place."

On June 27, a French Police officer murdered a 17-year-old teenager who was driving a car without a permit in the city of Nanterre. This event unleashed a wave of strong protests and riots throughout the country.

From that day to July 5th, over 2,500 buildings were set on fire or damaged, hundreds of businesses were looted, and some 12,000 vehicles were vandalized. According to the Interior Minister, security forces detained 4,000 people, a third of whom were minors.

So far, 742 people have been sentenced to prison and 600 citizens are already incarcerated.