French police shoot dead 2 in New Caledonia operation

Two men person been killed successful the French overseas territory of New Caledonia successful a constabulary cognition amid deadly unrest betwixt Indigenous Kanak people and French authorities.

The incidental occurred connected Thursday successful Saint Louis, southbound of the superior Noumea, during a constabulary involution to apprehend radical who person been suspected of participating successful 2 weeks of unit successful May, including equipped robbery and attacks connected information personnel.

French quality bureau AFP reported that 2 men were changeable dormant by police, citing nationalist authoritative Yves Dupas.

The officers were allegedly "directly threatened by a radical of equipped individuals," astatine which constituent they fired disconnected 2 shots, 1 of which "hit a man, aged 30, positioned arsenic a lone gunman, successful the close broadside of the abdomen."

"The 2nd changeable deed a man, aged 29, successful the chest," Dupas said.

Thursday's deaths bring the toll from the caller unrest to 13.

What led to the unrest?

In May, unit was triggered successful the French Pacific territory, pursuing Paris' program for voting reforms which the Kanaks — who person agelong sought to interruption escaped from France — fear would further marginalize them and weaken their chances of winning independence.

The reforms progressive voting rights for thousands of non-Indigenous, semipermanent residents successful the territory, which has a colonisation of 270,000.

France deployed thousands of troops and constabulary to the territory — located astir 17,000 kilometers (10,600 miles) distant from Paris — to tackle the unrest. 

Hundreds of radical were injured and the harm from the riots is estimated astatine astir €2.2 cardinal ($2.4 billion).

In June, French President Emmanuel Macron suspended the arguable reform but unit has continued to persist.

French authorities successful New Caledonia imposed an extended curfew past week, putting a prohibition connected gatherings and question crossed the archipelago from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m., implicit a fearfulness of protests by the Kanak radical successful the airy week's day of the French takeover of the territory.

France took New Caledonia successful 1853 and granted citizenship to each Kanaks successful 1957.

dvv/ab (AFP, AP, Reuters)