France's justice minister announced on Wednesday that a significant number of individuals, surpassing 700, have been sentenced to prison in connection with the riots that occurred in the country at the end of last month. The minister praised the magistrates for their resolute response to the situation.

In total, 1,278 verdicts have been delivered, and an overwhelming majority of more than 95 percent of defendants have been found guilty of various charges, including vandalism and assaulting police officers. The swift and decisive actions of the judiciary reflect the seriousness with which the authorities are addressing the aftermath of the riots, sending a clear message about the consequences of such unlawful behavior.


Six hundred people have already been jailed.

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“It was extremely important to have a response that was firm and systematic,” Justice Minister Eric Dupond-Moretti told RTL radio. “It was essential that we reestablish national order.”

On June 27, a police officer fatally shot a 17-year-old teenager with North African ancestry during a traffic check west of Paris. The incident was caught on camera by a bystander, and it marked the beginning of the most severe urban unrest in France since 2005.

Thanks to the deployment of over 45,000 security personnel, including elite police special forces and armored vehicles, the disturbances were subdued after four nights of violent battles.

Courts had been urged to impose severe penalties as a deterrence by Dupond-Moretti, with some remaining open during the weekend of the riots to manage a backlog of cases.

Many suspects had to make urgent appearances, and some defense attorneys expressed worries about the justice system's fairness and the disproportionate use of prison time.

The roughly 3,700 people who were detained had an average age of just 17; the juveniles appeared in separate children's tribunals.

The number of persons who have been condemned to prison is higher than it was in 2005, during the most recent large-scale riots, when 400 or so people were imprisoned.