France school protests: 15-year-old loses hand after picking up police grenade
The incident came as more than 400 of France’s 3,700 high schools were partially or completely closed on Monday
A 15-year-old student lost a hand after picking up a police grenade during nationwide school protests in France on Monday, as demonstrations continued over classroom conditions.
Authorities said the teenager was injured in the northern town of Lens. A police union source said he appeared to have picked up a sting-ball grenade fired by riot police before it exploded in his hand.
The incident came as more than 400 of France’s 3,700 high schools were partially or completely closed on Monday, according to the education ministry.
Students have been protesting since September over teacher shortages, overloaded timetables, poor classroom conditions and school buildings they say are unsuitable for rising temperatures.
The French Human Rights League accused police of using disproportionate force against demonstrators, many of whom are minors.
“We can see that in the instructions given to the police, there is no directive to show restraint, even though they are dealing with children,” its president Nathalie Tehio said.
Protests continued in Paris, Bordeaux and Lille on Monday ahead of larger demonstrations expected Tuesday.
The movement began at a school in the Paris suburb of Creteil on September 17 before spreading nationwide.
Since then, 24 schools have been burned or ransacked and more than 5,000 people have been arrested, 85 percent of them minors, according to authorities.
