French teen loses hand after handling police grenade amid school protests

A 15-year-old student in the northern town of Lens lost a hand on Monday after picking up a stun grenade fired by riot police, which detonated in his hand, according to a police union source cited by AFP.

The incident occurred amid ongoing demonstrations by students across France who have been blocking school entrances since late September to protest teacher shortages, overcrowded timetables, dilapidated facilities and inadequate heating and cooling.

Authorities said more than 400 of the country’s 3,700 high schools were partially or fully closed on Monday, with a third of schools in the Paris region shut down. While some pupils returned to classes, others continued protests outside campuses, sometimes accompanied by fireworks and occasional tear-gas deployment.

Student leader Daphnee Die warned that the unrest was becoming dangerous, saying, "> It's understandable, but it's getting really dangerous, and that's why we're warning students to be safe during these events."

The French Human Rights League criticized police tactics, with league president Nathalie Tehio stating, "> We can see that in the instructions given to the police, there is no directive to show restraint, even though they are dealing with children."

Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu announced a plan to prioritize staffing gaps in schools and scheduled a meeting with regional presidents to discuss renovating aging school buildings. The government also proposed legislation to hold families financially responsible for damage to public property caused by minors, a measure defended by spokeswoman Maud Bregeon, who said it raises questions of parental responsibility.

Since the movement began on Sept. 17, 24 schools have been burned or ransacked, and more than 5,000 people, most of them minors, have been arrested. Internal investigations are underway into several alleged cases of police brutality.