France Suspends Stun Grenade Use After 15-Year-Old Loses Hand in Student Protest Amid Most Dangerous Countries

France has suspended the use of stun grenades in policing student protests after a 15-year-old boy lost his hand in an incident involving a police grenade in Lens, a development that has drawn attention to conditions in some of the most dangerous countries for managing youth demonstrations. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez requested the pause until the facts of the incident had been clarified. [1] Rights groups have complained of police using disproportionate force towards teenagers protesting against old buildings, a lack of teachers and overcrowded classrooms. [1]

Suspension of Stun Grenades After Lens Incident

France has suspended the use of stun grenades during student protests after a 15-year-old boy lost his hand in an incident involving police during demonstrations in the northern city of Lens. [3] As reported, the Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez ordered the suspension pending clarification of what happened, amid conflicting accounts from authorities and protesters. [3] The incident occurred on Monday near Auguste Béhal High School in Lens. [3] Authorities said the teenager picked up an anti-encirclement grenade that had been deployed by police before it exploded. [3] Students, however, alleged that the boy was directly hit by a grenade fired by an officer. [3] According to the local prefecture, police had been confronted by between 200 and 250 students who were throwing stones and fireworks. [3] Nuñez said the police watchdog, IGPN, had opened 18 investigations into whether officers used proportionate force during the demonstrations. [3] “There is a police action that raises questions for all of us within the Ministry of the Interior; it’s what happened in Lens,” Nuñez told French radio RTL. [3] He said the use of stun grenades would remain suspended until the circumstances surrounding the incident had been established. [3] The grenades are classified as non-lethal weapons but release rubber projectiles when they detonate. [3] The Lens incident has intensified concerns over police tactics during the student demonstrations. [3] Concerns have also been stoked by the case of a 14-year-old hit in the face with a tear gas grenade last week. [5] The boy’s lawyer said he had lost several teeth and suffered a fractured jaw in the incident at Saint-Ouen-l’Aumône, north-west of Paris, and a police officer has been charged. [5] Meanwhile, prosecutors said on Wednesday that an investigation for attempted murder had been opened after a 17-year-old student protester complained an officer “held his head underwater” while trying to arrest him near a river in the north-eastern city of Belfort. [5]

Scale and Origins of the Student Protests

At least 250,000 students, teachers, parents, and unions protested nationwide on Tuesday against dilapidated school buildings, teacher shortages, and overcrowded classrooms. [2] The demonstrations have grown since students began blockading the entrances to their high schools on September 17, starting in the Paris suburb of Creteil. [2] The movement quickly spread throughout the city’s suburbs, with high schoolers protesting against conditions, lamenting dilapidated buildings, shortages of teachers and staff and overcrowded classrooms. [2] The blockades were met by a muscular police response, with riot police sent to break up the student protests. [2] More than 500 schools were fully or partially closed on Wednesday following Tuesday’s nationwide protests. [3] The Interior Ministry said 488 people were arrested and 43 security officers injured during the demonstrations. [3]

French student protesters highlight resource shortages in overcrowded schools during demonstrations in Lens. — Source: aljazeera

Protesters’ Voices and Demands

Al Jazeera spoke to several protesters about their demands. Theo, 19, student, said: “This is my first demonstration. I’m here in solidarity with the high schoolers, after this week of blockades and police oppression. I’m also here for other demands: for universities, for more resources for schools, and not just schools but hospitals too. We’re really short of resources. Macron’s government has to stop investing only in war. We’re fed up. That’s why we’re all here together in this movement of solidarity, young and old. We all have the same demands: a better future.” [2] Olympe, 16, high school student, said: “We blockaded our school all week to demand our rights and to denounce what’s happening in our schools. Teachers are absent, and compared with schools in Paris we don’t have the same resources. We’re given less money, and we don’t have the same privileges.” [2] Rania, 15, high school student, said: “We don’t feel listened to at all. We feel inferior, especially considering that we’re the future. So when no one listens to us, we do all this, but in the end will it really change anything? We don’t know.” [2] Maissene, student, said: “We came to support our classmates, simply because if they’re blockading, we blockade too. It’s a general movement, and they can’t do it on their own.” [2] Raphael, 17, high school student, said: “We came to defend our youth. Because we’re young, the state doesn’t listen to us. They think we have no political awareness and don’t know what we’re defending. We’re here to show the opposite: we know exactly what we’re defending. We know our values.” [2] Rose, 16, high school student, said: “If nothing changes, we’ll keep going for much longer. On October 17, there will be a big demonstration, with high schoolers, students and farmers. So it’ll be a bit like a new revolution.” [2] Clemence, 30, maths teacher in Paris, said: “I support the high schoolers’ movement 100%. Their demands are ones we’ve been making for years. Today, we’re taking the opportunity to march alongside them. They’re asking for more resources, more teachers, better teaching conditions. We’ve been asking for this for years, because the state badly neglects it… You saw how the heatwave was handled: our classrooms were between 35 and 40°C. It’s unacceptable.” [2] Clara, 20, fashion student, said: “I’m here first of all in support of the high schoolers who started this strike in the 93 [Seine-Saint-Denis]. It’s where I live, and I know these schools. They have always lived and worked in unacceptable conditions. Their demands are legitimate, and they have a right to be heard and listened to. So far I think the atmosphere is rather good. You can see everyone is mobilised, proud and happy to be here. But you can also feel a lot of anger, because for once we want our demands to be heard, and we want people to listen to this youth that has been complaining for several years.” [2] Tina, a 20-year-old student, said: “Yesterday we had a general assembly at our university, and the police and riot police were called in by our own administration. We said that was unacceptable. They started blocking our university, blocking our ideals of defending the high schoolers and the current cause. We don’t find that normal, so we came to demonstrate with them today to show our support. In the end there were no classes. We hadn’t finished expressing ourselves. We were peaceful, and they chose violence.” [2]

Police Response and Investigations in Most Dangerous Countries

More than 6,000 protesters have been arrested, with 85 percent under 18; over 210 teenagers, 85 school staff, and 715 police officers have been injured since mid-September. [3] France’s police watchdog IGPN has opened at least 10–18 investigations into alleged police misconduct, including disproportionate force with tear gas, batons, and rubber bullets. [3] Anne Savinel-Barras, president of Amnesty International France, called on authorities to “avoid unnecessary and excessive use of force”. [2] “Footage and testimonies widely reported over the last week raise alarming concerns about the dangerous use of tear gas, batons and restraint techniques by police. Tear gas grenades have been discharged recklessly, and rubber bullets have been fired causing serious injuries.” [2] The interior ministry said 488 people were arrested and 43 members of the security forces were hurt during Tuesday’s events. [5] More than 6,500 people have been stopped or arrested during the unrest, according to the Interior Ministry. [5]

Government Actions and Next Steps

The government announced a five-point reform plan that student leaders deemed insufficient; further protests are planned, with more than 500 schools still disrupted. [3] On October 2, France’s Education Minister Edouard Geffray met with student leaders and the government announced a five-point plan to reform the public education system – an olive branch students agreed was insufficient to address the crisis. [2] Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has condemned violence during the protests, saying 215 students, 85 school staff and 715 police officers had been injured since the demonstrations began in mid-September. [3] President Emmanuel Macron held an emergency meeting with Lecornu and other senior ministers on Tuesday as the government sought to find a way out of the escalating crisis. [3] Government figures estimated that more than 250,000 people participated in Tuesday’s demonstrations, while student unions put the turnout at around 450,000. [3] The head of the USL high school union, Ryad Rani, told French radio on Wednesday: “We are telling M. Nuñez, calm your police officers down and call for restraint.” [5]

Broader Context of the Unrest

Additional incidents include a 14-year-old suffering a fractured jaw from a tear-gas grenade and a 17-year-old alleging an officer held his head underwater, prompting an attempted-murder probe. [3] The disruption continued on Wednesday with more than 500 schools fully or partially shut. [5] Hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets on Tuesday to call for better school conditions and in some cities tear gas and water cannon were deployed. [5]

What to watch next: Further protests are planned for Thursday in Paris and other cities, with more than 500 schools still disrupted and student unions putting turnout figures at around 450,000 for recent demonstrations.