Sacre Bleu! Muslim Teens Riot In Paris For Sixth Day

Unrest spread across troubled suburbs around Paris in a sixth night of violence Tuesday as police clashed with angry youths and scores of vehicles were torched in at least nine towns, local officials said.

Police in riot gear fired rubber bullets at advancing gangs of youths in Aulnay-sous-Bois - one of the worst-hit suburbs - where 15 cars were burned, said the prefecture that runs the Seine-Saint-Denis region. Youths lobbed Molotov cocktails at an annex to the town hall and threw stones at the firehouse. It was not immediately clear whether there were injuries from the clashes.

Four people were arrested for throwing stones at police in nearby Bondy where 14 cars were burned, the prefecture said. A fire engulfed a carpet store, but it was not immediately clear whether the blaze was linked to the suburban unrest.

Officials gave an initial count of 69 vehicles torched in nine suburbs across the Seine-Saint-Denis region that arcs Paris on the north and northeast.

Hooliganism has been a common occurrence in the Muslim neighborhoods, and the French police have been reluctant to crack down on the grafitti and so far 13 have been arrested on this day alone. Small Dead Animals notes that the rioting is being portrayed as a class struggle that happens to be occurring in a predominantly Muslim neighborhood.

The rioting started six days ago as a 15 and 17 year-old were electrocuted hiding out in an electrical substation. It's disputed as to whether police were chasing them or not. The police contend that they were not chasing these kids.

LGF links to photos of the rioting. And the International Herald Tribune claims that rioting, arson, and vandalism in Paris is a routine occurence. In fact, the torching of cars is so routine, that on an average night between 20 and 40 cars are torched. According to the French Interior Minister:

Sarkozy says that violence in French suburbs is a daily fact of life.

Since the start of the year, 9,000 police cars have been stoned and, each night, 20 to 40 cars are torched, Sarkozy said in an interview last week with the newspaper Le Monde.

I find those figures to be astounding and would like to get some independent confirmation on that - it seems rather high - like taking Watts, South Central LA, and Detroit on their worst days and combining them into a year long riot. That surely shouldn't go unnoticed by the world press, but apparently it's only been in the last six days that the media has become interested. Curious.