France shooting: Fears in Paris suburb after police killing of teen

In the Pablo Picasso neighbourhood of Nanterre, the artists have been at work.

The shop walls along the main avenue of this Paris suburb are emblazoned with graffiti vowing "Justice for Nahel" and revenge for his death.

For a second night, that anger has exploded against the police in barrage after barrage of fireworks, some fired directly at officers. The violence at ground level makes colourful patterns in the night sky.

One local reporter said that for a while, in the early hours of the morning, some parts of the neighbourhood had been off limits to police.

A second night of violence - which spread across the country to areas of Toulouse, Lyon and Lille - will worry France's leaders.

The death of a young man at the hands of police touches a nerve in suburbs that feel segregated from France's prosperous city centres, and let down by the state.

The riots of 2005 hang over every official pronouncement here. All sides here remember the weeks of unrest - triggered by the death of two boys running from police in a Paris suburb - that led to a state of emergency being imposed.

Back then, local residents in the areas around Paris would camp out in schools to protect them from rioters. On Wednesday night in Nanterre, French media reported that residents had done so again.

The strenuous efforts of President Emmanuel Macron and his government to stand with Nahel and his family seem - so far - to be falling on deaf ears.

Anger at the police has grown here since their powers were increased after a wave of terrorist attacks in 2015.

And in Pablo Picasso on Thursday morning, as daily life resumed among the burnt-out cars, residents spoke of little else.

Behind the scenes of children playing on their scooters, and café terraces serving morning coffee, there's anxiety about what might be coming.

"The youth are angry," said 32-year-old Charlene, who has lived in Nanterre for over a decade. "Things are not going to calm down yet. I think it'll last for another 10 days at least."

"The violence at night is scary," said Naye, out walking with her toddler in a pushchair. "I'm really sad for the mother - he was her only child."

Later in Nanterre, Nahel's mother will lead a march in memory of her son. President Macron has called for it to be carried out in a spirit of reverence and calm.

The unspoken fear of many here: that the tragedy of a teenager's death could ignite a long cold war between French suburbs and French state.