France pledges to address youth violence after teen found dead in Seine

The French government has vowed that top officials will tackle a pattern of extreme violence among teenagers, often between gangs. The remarks followed the death of a 14-year-old girl who was beaten and pushed into the Seine river near Paris after a confrontation with two classmates this week.

France's government said Wednesday it would tackle youth violence after a series of incidencts, including the Monday death of a teenage girl in Argenteuil, near Paris. This photograph shows the cordoned-off area in Boussy-Saint-Antoine, southern suburbs of Paris, on 24 February 2021, in the aftermath of the death of a 14-year-old teenager in a brawl between rival groups. AFP - THOMAS COEX

Top government ministers in education, justice and security are to meet Friday with Prime Minister Jean Castex to discuss how to handle the wave of violent incidents among youth, especially in the Paris region.

“We cannot accept violence becoming commonplace,” government spokesperson Gabriel Attal told reporters following a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, adding the death of a 14-year-old girl on Monday was “absolutely tragic” and would “not go unpunished”.

Two suspects, a boyfriend and girlfriend who were in the same class as the victim, both aged 15, were detained at a friend’s house in the Paris suburb of Argenteuil in the early hours of Tuesday.

Investigators told AFP agency the boy had told his mother what happened and removed blood-covered clothes before fleeing to the friend’s house.

Testimony of the victims’ classmates and families indicated the girl had been the target of online and direct threats from the couple originating from exchanges on messaging service Snapchat.

“Violence reached its peak on Monday with the tragedy in Argenteuil,” state minister for youth Sarah El Hairy wrote in a tweet offering condolences to the victim’s family.

La violence a atteint son paroxysme lundi avec le drame d’#Argenteuil. Toutes mes pensées vont à la famille d'Alisha et à ses proches.
Continuons, toujours plus fort, notre lutte contre le harcèlement ☎️ 3020 et le cyber harcèlement ☎️ 0800 200 200. pic.twitter.com/6QyRxTqCZz

— Sarah EL HAÏRY (@sarahelhairy) March 10, 2021

“Let us work together, all the stronger, in our fight against harassment… and cyberharassment,” she said, adding numbers for youth helplines.

Series of incidents

The death late Monday is the latest bout of teenage violence to hit France, which has seen a string of violent incidents in recent months.

Also Monday, two teenagers, aged 14 and 16, were left in hospital battling for their lives following a gang brawl in Champigny-sur-Marne, east of the capital.

Earlier this month, two men, aged 17 and 27, faced judges following the shooting death of a 15-year-old in Paris suburb Bondy.

Two 14-year-olds died after fights in the Essonne suburb in Februrary, and a 15-year-old boy was put into a coma after a severe beating in Paris in January.

Beyond the Paris region, police have faced urban violence involving youth in Bron, near Lyon, and in the Oise department of northern France.

Covid tensions

A presidential adviser told Le Monde newspaper that President Emmanuel Macron was concerned about a “new and worrying phenomenon of brawls between youth aged 13 to 15, where weapons are appearing”.

According to the paper, Macron’s office thought the Covid-19 epidemic and a nationwide 6pm curfew imposed in January have heightened tensions among teens. Social networks also been linked to a rise in harassment of youth.

Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin and Justice Minister Eric Dupond-Moretti already met top justice and security officials regarding teenage gangs last week.

Friday’s meeting with Castex is expected to elaborate a new security directive for combatting gang violence, to be introduced in May.

Recent poll results have suggested the spate of violent incidents have harmed Macron’s approval rates.

“Emmanuel Macron’s record when it comes to insecurity is seen as being very weak,” Frédéric Dabi, director of Ifop polling institute, told Le Monde, explaining that criminality had become a chief concern of French people in recent months.

A September 2020 survey found criminality to be a preoccupation for 70 percent of respondents, just behind public health at 82 percent and the Covid epidemic at 78 percent.

According to Ifop, Macron’s approval rate among right-wing voters, those most preoccupied with security, fell from 54 to 34 percent between January and March.