Teen, 17, shot dead at point-blank range in Paris by police

Large-scale protests have erupted in Paris after a 17-year-old was shot dead by the police in the suburb of Nanterre.

The teenager was driving a car rental when he was pulled over for breaking several road rules, according to French prosecutors.

A video circulating on social media shows two police officers trying to stop the car, with one pointing his weapon directly at the 17-year-old through the car window. When the youth apparently tries to drive off, the policeman can be seen firing at point blank.

The car can be seen driving off for a few metres, before crashing into a nearby building.

Protests erupted across Paris overnight (Photo: Twitter)

Emergency services tried to resuscitate the teenager at the scene but he died shortly afterwards.

Local residents held a protest outside police headquarters. Tensions soared later on Tuesday between police and demonstrators who lit fires, set a car alight, destroyed bus stops and threw firecrackers towards police who responded with tear gas and dispersion grenades, according to videos broadcast on local media.

Several incidents of unrest were also recorded in the towns of Asnières, Colombes, Suresnes, Aubervilliers, Clichy-sous-Bois and Mantes-la-Jolie.

Nine people were arrested in the confrontations, authorities said.

Authorities have opened two separate investigations following the teen's death - one into a possible killing by a public official, and another into the driver's failure to stop his vehicle and the alleged attempt to kill a police officer.

Paris police chief Laurent Nuñez told French television station BFMTV that the policeman's actions "raises questions", though he suggested the officer may have felt threatened.

The 17-year-old's family lawyer Yassine Bouzrou insisted that was an illegitimate defence, telling the same channel the video "clearly showed a policeman killing a young man in cold blood".

He added that the family had filed a complaint against police for "lying" - after initially claiming the car had tried to run down the officers.

Another lawyer representing the victim's family, Jennifer Cambla, told local media that nothing could justify what had happened, and described the death as an "execution".

In a video posted on TikTok, Naël's mother urged people to join her on a march for her son.

"Come all, I beg you", she said. "We will all be there."

"I'm hurting for my France. An unacceptable situation. All my thoughts go out to Naël's family and loved ones, this little angel gone far too soon," Paris Saint-Germaine striker Kylian Mbappe wrote on Twitter.