Protesters, mostly minors, have torched cars, damaged infrastructure and clashed with police in an outpouring of rage since an officer shot Nahel M point blank as he attempted to flee a traffic stop on Tuesday.

The killing was captured on video, which spread on social media and fuelled the anger over police violence against minorities, exposing severe racial tensions in France.

A 38-year-old policeman has been charged with voluntary homicide over Nahel’s death and has been remanded in custody.

A day after Nahel was laid to rest in his hometown near Paris, the interior ministry said police had made 719 arrests overnight, still a provisional tally, after around 1,300 the previous night.

Some 45 police officers or gendarmes were injured, 577 vehicles torched, 74 buildings set on fire and 871 fires set in streets and other public spaces, it said.

While nationwide numbers suggested an overall decline in tension across the country, police still recorded a number of incidents.

The mayor of a town south of Paris said rioters had rammed a car into his home, injuring his wife and one of his children, and set a fire.

“Last night the horror and disgrace reached a new level,” said the mayor, Vincent Jeanbrun, while prosecutors said they were investigating the incident for attempted murder.

Some 45,000 police were deployed across France, the same number as the night before, and backup was dispatched to the previous days’ flashpoints, including Lyon, Grenoble and Marseille.

Of the total, 7,000 were concentrated on Paris and its suburbs, including along tourist hotspot the Champs Elysees avenue in central Paris following calls on social media to take rioting to the heart of the capital.

The massive police presence had helped keep the violence in check, said interior minister Gerald Darmanin.

“A calmer night thanks to the resolute action of the security forces,” he tweeted early today.

In Marseille, which has seen intense clashes and looting, police dispersed groups of youths yesterday evening at Canebiere, the main avenue running through the centre of the city, AFP journalists said.

A number of towns have declared overnight curfews.

The protests present a fresh crisis for President Emmanuel Macron who had been hoping to press on with his second mandate after seeing off months of protests that erupted in January over raising the pensions age.

In an illustration of the situation’s gravity he postponed a state visit to Germany scheduled to begin today.

Nahel’s funeral ceremony was held yesterday in Nanterre, where he lived, with hundreds gathering peacefully along with his mother and grandmother.

The event was marked by “reflection” and went off “without incidents”, a witness said.

In a bid to limit the ongoing violence, buses and trams in France have stopped running after 9pm and the sale of large fireworks and flammable liquids has been banned.

Marseille has stopped all urban transport from 6pm.

Macron has urged parents to take responsibility for underage rioters, one-third of whom were “young or very young”.

Justice minister Eric Dupond-Moretti said yesterday that 30% of those arrested were minors, while Darmanin said the average age of those arrested was just 17.

The unrest has raised concerns abroad, with France hosting the Rugby World Cup in the autumn and the Paris Olympic Games in the summer of 2024.

Britain and other European countries updated their travel advice to warn tourists to stay away from areas affected by the rioting.

China’s consulate in Marseille similarly warned its citizens to “be vigilant and exercise caution” after state-run media reported the pelting with stones of a bus carrying Chinese tourists in the southern city.

Police in the Swiss border city of Lausanne detained seven people after a crowd gathered and caused damage to businesses in disturbances apparently prompted by rioting in France, the Keystone SDA news agency reported today.

Police reported that more than 100 youths had gathered in the city on Lake Geneva late yesterday.

They were responding to violent demonstrations in France following Nahel’s death on Tuesday.

Those detained included six minors aged between 15 and 17 and one 24-year-old man.