Understanding the unrest in France

07/07/23 • 49 min

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French cities have been engulfed by almost a week of intense riots, following the death of a teenager. Nahel M was shot at point blank range by police after he refused to stop for a traffic check in his hometown of Nanterre, a north-west Parisian suburb. The unrest led to more than 3,000 arrests and the deployment of tens of thousands of police around France. The riots have exposed deep divisions in French society. On The Real Story this week: why has France again been rocked by violent unrest? What makes so many of those who live in the suburbs of France’s major cities feel neglected by the state and politicians? And what are the government and opposition parties proposing as solutions?

Shaun Ley is joined by:

Rim-Sarah Alouane, a French legal scholar and commentator at the University Toulouse-Capitole in France

Professor Philippe Marlière, Professor of French and European Politics at University College London

Laetitia Strauch-Bonart, French writer and Editor at the French news magazine L'Express

Also featuring:

Natalia Pouzyreff, an MP from President Emmanuel Macron’s Renaissance party

Inès Seddiki, founder of GHETT’UP, an organisation which works with young people in France’s suburbs

(Photo: The French interior minister has asked regions to ban the sale of fireworks, petrol cans and flammable products. Credit: Getty Images)

Shaun Ley is joined by:

Rim-Sarah Alouane, a French legal scholar and commentator at the University Toulouse-Capitole in France

Professor Philippe Marlière, Professor of French and European Politics at University College London

Laetitia Strauch-Bonart, French writer and Editor at the French news magazine L'Express

Also featuring:

Natalia Pouzyreff, an MP from President Emmanuel Macron’s Renaissance party

Inès Seddiki, founder of GHETT’UP, an organisation which works with young people in France’s suburbs

(Photo: The French interior minister has asked regions to ban the sale of fireworks, petrol cans and flammable products. Credit: Getty Images)

Previous Episode

Wagner's 24-hour mutiny

Wagner is a private military company of mercenaries that has been fighting alongside the regular Russian army in Ukraine. Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin has for months been involved in a feud with the Russian defence ministry, but he denies trying to overthrow Mr Putin's regime. The short-lived rebellion, which saw Wagner fighters seize a major Russian city before heading north towards Moscow in a column of military vehicles, was a response to government plans to take direct control of Wagner, Prigozhin claims. This week on the Real Story we are focusing on the implications for Russia's military of the mutiny by a man who was once President Putin's caterer.

Shaun Ley is joined by: Catrina Doxsee - From the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington DC. Pjotr Sauer - Russian affairs reporter for The Guardian newspaper. Samir Puri - author of Russia’s Road to War with Ukraine: Invasion amidst the ashes of empires. Also featuring: Professor Sergei Markov - Director of the Institute for Political Studies in Moscow.

Produced by: Imogen Wallace, Ellen Otzen, Alex Hacillo & Rumella Dasgupta

(Photo: Armored vehicles and fighters of Wagner on the streets of Rostov-on-Don, Russia; Credit: Arkady Budnitsky/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Next Episode

Deep-sea mining: Curse or cure?

The deepest parts of the Pacific Ocean have been largely unexplored for centuries. But now the ecosystem thousands of metres beneath the surface is under threat - from companies wanting to mine the seabed for rare metals and minerals.

The proposals to allow deep-sea mining are centre-stage at global talks by the International Seabed Authority - the UN body in charge of regulation - and its members in Jamaica in the coming weeks. It comes after a two-year ban on the practice expired when countries failed to reach an agreement on new rules.

Scientists fear a "goldrush" for precious metals beneath the oceans could have devastating consequences for marine life.

But supporters argue that these metals are needed if the world is to meet the demand for green technologies - such as electric car batteries - that will be key in the fight against climate change.

So is this a necessary step in the journey towards cleaner, greener technologies? Does climate change pose a bigger risk to our oceans overall? And what impact might mining have on this rare and delicate ecosystem?

Shaun Ley is joined by:

Pierre Josso, mineral geoscientist at the British Geological Survey

Helen Czerski, physicist and oceanographer at University College London and author of 'Blue Machine: How the ocean shapes our world'

Toby Fisher, environment lawyer who has negotiated with the International Seabed Authority

Also featuring: Gerard Barron, CEO of The Metals Company

Photo: An animal from the deep Pacific Ocean known as a 'gummy squirrel'. Credit: SMARTEX Project, Natural Environment Research Council, UK smartexccz.org

Producer: Sarah Passmore and Pandita Lorenz