'No agenda' to suburb rioting

PARIS - French police believe recent riots in poor suburbs of France were not organised and had no leader or agenda, according to a police report cited in Le Parisien.

The conclusions contrast with comments made by some leaders during nightly unrest which abated in mid-November after three weeks.

"What France saw was a non-organised uprising which turned into a popular revolt on housing estates without any leader," Le Parisien quoted the report.

During the unrest, Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin blamed the violence indirectly on gangs, which he said sought to keep police out of their neighbourhoods.

The report also estimated the cost of the violence at more than 250 million ($413.3 million) although it did not explain what that figure included.

- REUTERS