France is on a knife edge.
Holding its breath as unrest spreads across the country, bursting out of the banlieues – the often socially-neglected suburbs – after the fatal shooting this week of a 17-year-old from a French-Algerian family by police near Paris.
These types of riots are not unheard of in France. But the intensity of feeling taking hold of the country, whether amongst those sympathising with the police or with the banlieues and the victim’s family – hasn’t been witnessed in France since summer 2005.
And while President Macron visibly struggles to get the situation under control, his political nemesis on the far-right – Marine Le Pen – with her tough-on-security, anti-immigration message – may well end up benefitting in the polls.
God forbid the riffraff elect a government they want.
