Paris massacre of 1961 [SEP] point in time
Paris massacre of 1961
The Paris massacre of 1961 occurred on 17 October 1961, during the Algerian War (1954–62). Under orders from the head of the Parisian police, Maurice Papon, the French National Police attacked a demonstration of some 30,000 pro-National Liberation Front (FLN) Algerians. After 37 years of denial and censorship of the press, in 1998 the French government finally acknowledged 40 deaths, although there are estimates of 100 to 300 victims. Death was due to heavy-handed beating by the police,
in the crime nor that of those politically responsible at the time have been clearly established, much less officially condemned. 
On 17 October 2012, President François Hollande acknowledged the 1961 massacre of Algerians in Paris.
In popular culture.
- The massacre was referenced in "Caché," a 2005 film by Michael Haneke.
- The 2005 French television drama-documentary "Nuit noire, 17 octobre 1961" explores in detail the events of the massacre. It follows the lives of several people and also shows some