The incident happened outside a local school in Lens amid a wave of unrest that has gripped France
A 15-year-old school student has had his hand torn off by a police crowd-control grenade during a protest in the French city of Lens. The incident comes amid a nationwide wave of unrest and street violence that has gripped France since late September.
Demonstrators have demanded increased funding for public schools and better learning conditions, including more teachers, smaller classes and repairs to dilapidated buildings.
Speaking at a press conference on Monday, Francois-Xavier Lauch, the prefect of the northern Pas-de-Calais department, reported that the teenager’s “hand was torn off,” apparently by a police grenade, during a protest outside Behal high school in Lens earlier in the day.
“There was no hand left, not even his wrist, there was nothing there,” one student told BFMTV, describing the gruesome scene. The boy was rushed to a hospital in Lille and was in a non-life-threatening condition, according to officials.
Lauch stated that violence erupted after an estimated 200 students began hurling objects at police officers who had been deployed to the school to lift a blockade imposed by protesters.
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