A youth worker who was allegedly raped with a baton by police in an attack which sparked nearly two weeks of violent clashes has been released from hospital.
The alleged attack in a Paris suburb sent shockwaves across the country, with clashes between protesters and police in cities as far afield as Brittany, Calais and Normandy, as well as districts across Paris.
Since the 22-year-old man, named Theo, was injured on February 2, an estimated 200 people have been arrested during widespread scenes of unrest played out in full view of a shocked French population.
Last night officers using riot gear released tear gas in the district of Bobigny in the north of the French capital, during a demonstration demanding justice.
In an emotional video released after he left hospital, Theo, flanked by his mother and sister, said: "I am very tired. The wound has not yet recovered."Theo was arrested by four police officers in the suburb of Aulnay-sous-Bois, and said he was sodomised with a truncheon, as well as being racially abused, spat at and beaten around his genitals.
He was hospitalised on the day of the alleged rape, during which doctors said he had suffered severe anal injuries.
Theo, who has called for calm during the unrest his ordeal caused, said: "Thanks to God, I went out on my two legs.
"I was in a wheelchair in very poor condition, and was told I had to stay in hospital for another 10 days, but I could not accept this.
"I do not know if I would have managed to keep well mentally."
While being treated in hospital, the youth worker was visited by French President Francois Hollande, who tweeted that the victim had "reacted with dignity and responsibility," and trusted that justice would be served.
Earlier this week 17 people were arrested in Nantes for alleged offences including carrying fireworks and weapons and violence.
Last night protesters threw stones and iron bars near the main shopping centre in Bobigny, and dramatic pictures show clouds of tear gas in the street.
Twenty four hours earlier, protesters in the 18th District in the north of Paris lit piles of rubbish and rubbish bins on fire in the streets as riot police threw tear gas canisters, which were in turn thrown back at them.
Tear-gas was used by police as buildings and rubbish bins were set on fire around the Barbes Metro station, which is just around the corner from the Eurostar hub at Gare du Nord.
As fire crews went in to extinguish the blazes, lines of riot police were attacked, and shops were looted.
Four officers have been charged with rape and assault after video emerged showing the young man being set upon during an arrest.
The unrest, which spreads across two weeks, has seen millions of euros worth of damage caused, with police stations and vehicles atttacked.
On Wednesday a coach full of South Korean tourists was targeted by rioters in one of the many flashpoints.
French president Francois Hollande, who visited Theo in hospital, has appealed for calm.
And on Monday, following a night of rioting across France, interior minister Bruno Le Roux said: "In a democracy, expressing anger, a demand or giving an opinion is totally legitimate.
"But smashing things, burning other people's property, destroying it, that is the behaviour of rabble-rousers that have nothing to do with the acts they pretend to denounce."
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