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French leaders under fire for response

As urban violence spread Sunday from the shores of the Mediterranean to the German border and onto the streets of central Paris, the French government came under increasing fire for its dithering response to the mounting wave of unrest.

"Where is the president of the Republic when such grave things happen?" asked opposition Socialist party leader Francois Hollande on Sunday, criticizing Jacques Chirac for his silence since appealing for "dialogue" last Wednesday. "I would like to hear from him."

Government leaders have held repeated meetings amongst themselves and with neighborhood representatives, and more than 2,300 riot police are patrolling the uneasy Paris suburbs to deal with youths burning cars and buildings.

But officials have offered no concrete proposals to quell the disturbances, even after 10 straight nights of tumult. It wasn`t even until the weekend, more than a week after everything started, that President Jacques Chirac really spoke out out the disturbances.