Hassan broke down in tears after being forced to abandon his technology and courier shop on a main street near Paris’s Place de la République as rioters looted and ransacked the premises over the weekend.
“They attacked me physically and threatened to smash a wine bottle over my head. I had no choice but to abandon my business,” he told Euronews.
A father of three originally from Bangladesh, Hassan arrived in France in 2010. After years working in hospitality, he saved enough to open the shop with a business partner in 2016.
“We built this place up gradually over the past decade, piece by piece,” he said.
“This was once my workspace, but now there is nothing left. I have not slept since it happened,” he lamented from behind the counter where he normally welcomes customers.
While awaiting an insurance assessment, Hassan cannot begin cleaning up the wreckage and remains surrounded by the physical aftermath of the weekend’s violence. Shattered phones, empty delivery parcels, and broken glass cover the shop floor. He must still cover rent, bills, and employee wages.
His shop is located in one of the Paris neighbourhoods hardest hit by the violence on 17 October. Although many demonstrators marched peacefully, some protests were overtaken by looters who raided and destroyed businesses ranging from small independents to major enterprises.
‘How is this possible?’
Acting on advice from French authorities, Hassan closed his shop for Saturday afternoon. Hours later, when he checked his security camera app on his phone, he froze in disbelief.
“I saw about 30 people inside the shop. I thought, how is this possible?”
He rushed back to the business, but police initially denied him access to the perimeter because of ongoing violence and rioting. When he pleaded with officers and showed them live footage of his shop being destroyed, they relented.
By the time he reached the site, however, he found himself completely helpless, with no police in sight.
Euronews separately obtained footage of looters breaking into the adjacent apartment building, which houses one of the shop’s entrances. Neighbours begged them to stop but were unable to intervene, fearing for their own safety.
“There was a mix of young girls and boys. Some looked as young as 15. It was a constant stream—once one group finished stealing, another arrived.”
The looters stole phones, electronics, and parcels. Some remained outside, passing goods to one another through the smashed storefront. The basement storeroom was also ransacked.
‘We just want to make a living and do our job’
A local courier who had delivered many of the stolen packages told Euronews that he had seen other businesses in even worse condition.
“We just want to earn an honest living and do our jobs. Others want to destroy everything.”
Across the street, an Intermarché—one of France’s largest supermarket chains—has remained closed since it was plundered over the weekend. Staff have spent days clearing glass and restocking shelves.
Some hard-left activists have condemned damage to small businesses while expressing greater tolerance for looting major supermarkets and corporations, which they view as symbols of capitalism.
But for the postal worker interviewed by Euronews, that reasoning does not hold. “It is not justifiable. It is all destroyed,” he said.
Following the looting, local resident Noam set up a crowdfunding page for Hassan, which has already drawn thousands of dollars in donations.
“We know Hassan because he helps us with deliveries and other tasks regularly. He is someone we work with. We are trying to help as much as we can. There is a huge amount of work ahead, but we want to get through this together with a community spirit.”
Riots Followed Largely Peaceful Protests
The French government has launched emergency financial aid and structural relief programmes to support affected businesses. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said on Monday that businesses impacted by the unrest could place staff on activité partielle, the state-funded furlough scheme, starting Tuesday.
The weekend’s violence came after four weeks of largely peaceful student protests against deteriorating conditions in French schools.
Throughout the movement, human rights organisations have accused law enforcement of using excessive force against demonstrators. Much of the criticism centres on rubber-bullet launchers, known in France as LBDs, and stun grenades, which critics blame for serious injuries to protesters.
On Saturday, trade unions, yellow vest protesters, and students took part in major demonstrations across the country. Although most marchers were peaceful, rioters overshadowed the protests with mass looting and clashes with police.
France has since imposed curfews in many regions and significantly increased security ahead of further demonstrations planned for 24 October. The government has also announced the deployment of military forces alongside police to maintain public order.
