Update [2005-11-3 15:6:8 by susanhu]: Jerome A Paris has substantially updated the EuroTrib story on the incidents. And here are more of the latest stories: "Fresh violence hits Paris suburbs," via BBC, and "Violence Escalates! France in Retreat" via Gateway Pundit (a conservative blog linked at Memeorandum):

As the violence continues to escalate in France, the attacks against Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy continue to increase as well. Sarkozy is one Frenchman who looked through the multiculturalist smoke from the exploding molotov cocktails to call the rioters "thugs". Therefore, it only makes sense to blame him for the torchings of schools, cars, malls and the toppling of a local police station.

Jacques Chirac continues to call for calm.

Gangs take Police Station! 177 vehicles burned! Shopping Center Torched! ...

A Russian tourist bus was set ablaze, leaving 28 tourists from Yaroslavl unable to get home. EuroTrib's WhatAboutBob is on the story:

The more disquieting thing to me is, IF I understand it correctly, that it seems like [Interior Minister Nicolas] Sarkozy is trying to use this whole unrest for political purposes (ie., to look tough and play on racial fears), when the approach should be to, as Chirac put it: ""Apply the law in a spirit of dialogue and respect". (More at EuroTrib)

Update [2005-11-3 15:40:12 by susanhu]: Jerome A Paris has substantially updated the EuroTrib story on the riots.

I watched BBC World News last night on PBS, and the commentator noted that Sarkozy is attempting to use this incident to portray himself as a "get tough" politician in a bid to replace Chirac. While we in the U.S. are used to this "get tough" c-r-a-p from politicians on both sides, it's apparently a new political tactic in French politics, according to the BBC. Sarkozy has also "sought to balance that with calls for positive discrimination to help the children of immigrants, and state funds to help build mosques ... but those calls risk being drowned out in the cacophony surrounding the latest riots."

By the way, the violence began when two boys who were reportedly running from police climbed over a wall into a power station, and were both electrocuted. Violence has spread to several towns outside Paris.