France vows crackdown on foreign-born criminals

President Nicolas Sarkozy warned yesterday that France would strip foreign-born criminals of their French nationality if they use violence against police or public officials.

Struggling in the opinion polls after his government was implicated in a financial scandal and in the wake of a spate of violent unrest, Mr Sarkozy announced a headline-grabbing package of security measures.

Top of the list, in a week when Mr Sarkozy had already threatened to expel foreign Roma minorities who commit crimes back to Eastern Europe, was a vow to tighten nationality rules for other non-French-born criminals.

"Nationality should be stripped from anyone of foreign origin who deliberately endangers the life of a police officer, a soldier or a gendarme or anyone else holding public authority," Mr Sarkozy said.

Speaking in the eastern city of Grenoble, scene in recent weeks of clashes between police and armed rioters, Mr Sarkozy said that foreign minors who commit crimes would henceforth find it harder to get citizenship on coming of age.

During fierce street battles on the weekend of July 16, rioters opened fire and torched shops and cars in Grenoble after police shot dead a 27-year-old suspected robber in a chase.

A prosecutor ruled police had fired in self-defence after the suspect opened fire on them with an automatic weapon.

In a separate clash last week, masked rioters tried to break down the door of a police station in Saint-Aignan, central France, damaged buildings and burned cars in anger after police shot dead a Gypsy during a car chase.