Nine Arrested after Paris Suburban Police Station Attacked

A view shows the Eiffel Tower, La Defense business district and rooftops of Paris, France, March 16, 2024. REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier
A view shows the Eiffel Tower, La Defense business district and rooftops of Paris, France, March 16, 2024. REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier
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Nine Arrested after Paris Suburban Police Station Attacked

A view shows the Eiffel Tower, La Defense business district and rooftops of Paris, France, March 16, 2024. REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier
A view shows the Eiffel Tower, La Defense business district and rooftops of Paris, France, March 16, 2024. REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier

Nine people were arrested after a police station in the Paris suburb of La Courneuve was attacked late on Sunday evening following clashes between youths and police forces, the head of the Paris police said on Monday.
The clashes occurred following the death last week of a youth who had failed to stop his motorbike after police had ordered him to do so.
"There were nine arrests, which is not insignificant," Laurent Nunez told TF1 television on Monday.
"Police reinforcements quickly restored order and security," Reuters quoted him as saying.
Security issues are of paramount importance for French authorities with the Paris Olympics due to start on July 26. Some Paris Olympics sites were vandalized during rioting in the summer of 2023 which was triggered by the fatal shooting of a teenager of north African descent by police.



Mexican Authorities to Seal Secret Tunnel on US Border

 A National Guard agent inspects an illegal tunnel bound to El Paso in US, at the Mexico-US border in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, on January 18, 2025. (AFP)
A National Guard agent inspects an illegal tunnel bound to El Paso in US, at the Mexico-US border in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, on January 18, 2025. (AFP)
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Mexican Authorities to Seal Secret Tunnel on US Border

 A National Guard agent inspects an illegal tunnel bound to El Paso in US, at the Mexico-US border in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, on January 18, 2025. (AFP)
A National Guard agent inspects an illegal tunnel bound to El Paso in US, at the Mexico-US border in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, on January 18, 2025. (AFP)

A clandestine tunnel discovered on the US-Mexico border allowing entry from Ciudad Juarez into the Texan city of El Paso will be sealed by Mexican authorities, an army official said Saturday, adding that its construction was under investigation.

Discovered on January 10 by US and Mexican security agencies, the tunnel measures approximately 300 meters (1,000 feet) in length on the Mexican side and is equipped with lighting, ventilation and is reinforced to prevent collapses.

Hidden in a storm sewer system operating between both cities, its access is about 1.8 meters high and 1.2 meters wide (6 feet high and 4 feet wide), making for easy passage of people or contraband, said General Jose Lemus, commander of Ciudad Juarez's military garrison, which is guarding the tunnel.

The tunnel's construction "must have taken a long time... it could have been one or two years," Lemus told reporters, declining to give details about how long it had been operating as well as its possible builders and operators.

He said the Mexican Attorney General's Office was responsible for the investigation and would be in charge of determining if there was complicity by the authorities due to the fact that it was built without them noticing.

Lemus also said clues about the tunnel's existence and location were discussed by human traffickers on social media platforms like TikTok.

Ahead of the US presidential inauguration of Donald Trump on Monday, both sides of the US-Mexico border have reinforced security measures, as the returning Republican has vowed a massive deportation of migrants soon after he takes office.

In the state of Chihuahua, which includes Ciudad Juarez, authorities reported a fire in a temporary camp for undocumented migrants, which led to the evacuation of 39 adults and 17 minors, according to the state police.

According to the Mexican newspaper Reforma, the fire was started by some of the migrants who were camping there to resist attempts by immigration authorities to detain them and transfer them to Mexico City for later deportation.

The National Institute of Migration did not respond to AFP's requests for comment.