Hundreds of youths fought pitched battles with police for a second night running as volatile housing estates north of Paris erupted into violence after the deaths of two teenagers.

38 officers were wounded, three seriously, when gangs threw stones, firecrackers and petrol bombs at riot police, who responded with teargas and stun guns. Protesters blame police for fleeing the scene of a crash on Sunday between a patrol car and a motorbike in which Moushin, 15, and Larami, 16, children of African immigrants, whose surnames cannot be revealed, were killed.

In what observers described as a battle for control of a roundabout in the centre of Villiers-le-Bel, a town with many poor housing estates, at least 36 cars were last night set on fire. Confronted by up to 100 youths, mostly hooded, police were forced to retreat. A pre-school, a driving school and a beauty salon were also torched, according to witnesses.

In a nearby suburb around a dozen people forced a bus driver out of his vehicle before beating him and setting fire to the bus, police said.

The disturbances came as prosecutors began a manslaughter inquiry into the deaths of the two teenagers. An initial police investigation found that the pair were at fault, speeding through a red light on a mini dirt bike, unlicensed and without helmets.

President Sarkozy, who as Interior Minister two years ago was criticised for appearing to provoke weeks of copycat violence, interrupted a state visit to China to appeal for calm. “Let everyone cool down and let justice determine who is responsible,” he said.

There were fears that the accident could ignite violence in the way that the accidental deaths of two boys at nearby Clichy-sous-Bois in October 2005 triggered rioting across the northeastern suburbs and then across France. “This is Clichy all over again,” said François Pupponi, the mayor of Sarcelles, which adjoins Villiers-le-Bel.

Didier Vaillant, the Socialist mayor of the town, said: “I am appealing to all, so that we can get back to calm. We are in mourning,” he said. “I ask all residents and especially the youth not to succumb to anger.”

The violence was condemned by the political world. Among the victims on Sunday was a police inspector, who was beaten with steel bars. Police said that a shotgun was fired at them. Fifteen cars were torched and a police station and a MacDonald’s restaurant burnt down.

The burning and looting was cited by the Opposition as evidence that nothing had improved since 2005. François Hollande, the Socialist Party leader, called the violence the result of “a social and political crisis”. He added: “Promises were made. We want to see the results. How long have we been talking about a ‘plan for the suburbs’?”

Dominique de Villepin, who was Prime Minister in 2005 and promised ¤1 billion (£720 million) to improve life in the suburbs of French cities, called for urgent answers to defuse the anger. “The sense of injustice that was felt at Clichy-sous-Bois is being felt today at Villiers-le-Bel,” he said.

Reports over the past month have shown that life has barely improved in the ghetto-like estates of northern and eastern suburbs, where the children of immigrants suffer from poverty, unemployment and educational neglect.

Jean-Marie Le Pen, the leader of the far-right National Front, gave a provocative verdict: “There is an overpopulation of foreigners in our suburbs. There is unemployment, which means that people have time to wander around, to play with cars and all sorts of things, often with stolen cars.”

The local prosecutor opened an investigation to determine whether the offences of manslaughter and leaving the scene of an accident had been committed. After examining the police car and interviewing the two officers, inspectors said that they had not been at fault. It was not clear however whether they had performed all their duties after the accident.

A brother of one of the victims accused the police officers of ramming the motorbike and of failing to assist the boys. “This is a failure to assist a person in danger. They know it, and that’s why they did not stay at the scene,” he said. “I know they will say they left because they were afraid of clashes or of being assaulted, but up until now we have had no apology.”

The 2005 clashes

–– 200 nights of rioting

–– 8,973 vehicles torched

–– 2,888 arrests

–– 1 person died

Source: Times archives

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