Paris: Hooded men set public bus afire

Unrest was reported in two Paris suburbs on Wednesday night with hooded youths setting a public bus on fire after forcing passengers off.

Officials also said that a group of 50 youths were throwing stones at cars.

A number of hooded youths boarded the bus around 10 pm Tuesday and threw a bottle of flammable liquid. The 10 passengers were able to escape and firefighters put out the flames, said an official from the Hauts-de-Seine region.

No one was hurt and no arrests have been made in the incident that happened in Nanterre. On Sunday, a bus was set alight in Grigny in Essonne region, southwest of Paris.

The Essonne transit authority on Wednesday suspended nighttime bus service and some routes would be modified to avoid certain neighbourhoods for security reasons following multiple incidents.

On Wednesday, a tear gas bomb was thrown at a bus and drivers were threatened.

The attacks come a year after three-week long riots last year by suburban youth in 300 cities burned 10,300 vehicles as well as damaged 300 schools, libraries and other public buildings.

DPA