France Arrests Five Chechens In Raids After Unrest

French security forces on Thursday detained five members of the Chechen community on suspicion of taking part in successive nights of violence that rocked the eastern city of Dijon

Dijon, France, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th Jun, 2020 ) :French security forces on Thursday detained five members of the Chechen community on suspicion of taking part in successive nights of violence that rocked the eastern city of Dijon.

Police carried out early morning raids at six addresses across France, with the arrests made in Dijon and Besancon, 90 kilometres (55 miles) away.

Five people were held, said a source close to the inquiry, asking not to be named. They are suspected of taking part in the unrest but their precise roles have yet to be made clear.

From Friday to Monday, Dijon was rocked by successive nights of violence after an assault this month on a 16-year-old Chechen boy that prompted other members of the community to stage reprisal raids.

Chechens had reportedly travelled to Dijon from all over France and even from neighbouring Belgium and Germany to take part.

The violence focused on the low-income district of Gresilles, which has a large community of people originally from North Africa.

Criticised for not taking action sooner, the French authorities vowed a tough response and sent police reinforcements, and the past two nights have been calm.