Overview
- Since July 21, Nîmes has prohibited under-16s from entering public spaces between 21:00 and 06:00 in six neighborhoods plagued by drug-related shootings.
- Officials say the curfew will protect uninvolved minors and discourage the use of children as operatives by drug gangs.
- The prefect has bolstered local forces with extra police patrols in the designated districts to ensure compliance.
- Similar nighttime youth curfews have been enacted this summer in Béziers and parts of the Paris suburbs as France confronts escalating narco-violence.
- Wissem Guesmi of the Unité police union calls the curfew a temporary fix, and residents demand increased funding for youth services.