The Paris police department banned a planned protest against police violence on Saturday. This came after a series of protests over the fatal police shooting of a 17-year-old North African boy, Nahel Merzouk on June 27, which have evolved into a civil movement similar to the Black Lives Matter protests in the US.

Assa Traoré, the half-sister of Adama Traoré who allegedly died of asphyxiation under police custody in 2016, organized a demonstration in tribute to her half-brother at Place de la République in Paris. The protest organized through social media was to be held on 8 July, but was banned by the Paris police department.

Police claimed that declaring a protest one day before the planned date was insufficient for the police to mobilize the resources needed to ensure safety, and that it was a sensitive time to organize such a protest following an incident of urban violence in Paris. Other mass gatherings had already been planned at the same location, which police allege would make it difficult to maintain order. Under the French Panel Code, organizing undeclared demonstrations is an offense publishable by imprisonment for six months and a fine of 7,500 euros.

Despite police attempts at banning the protest, demonstrators still held an event in memory of Adama Traoré on Sunday.