A fire last night killed seven people and injured 14 in a rundown building in central Paris housing immigrants.
The fire came only three days after 17 people died in a blaze in a crowded apartment block used by African immigrants.
The blaze raised new questions about the conservative government's fire safety record and housing policies, which have been under attack since a fire in April killed 24 people at a Paris hotel used by immigrants.
Fire-fighters struggled for an hour last night to bring the blaze under control after it broke out in the stairwell of a building in the historic Marais district of the French capital, fire officials said.
A fire spokesman said six people were killed at the scene; a child later died after being taken to hospital. Five firefighters were among the injured and two people were seriously hurt.
President Jacques Chirac expressed his condolences to the families, and ordered a prompt investigation into "another dreadful fire". Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin's office said an inquiry was under way.
The mayor of the district where the fire broke out said the building had been occupied by around a dozen families from Ivory Coast in West Africa.
"These people were living in unacceptable and dangerous circumstances," he said, adding that the city authorities had taken steps in July to rehouse the families.
The tragedies have sparked outrage over safety standards in hostels and rundown buildings used to house immigrants. It has also prompted a wider debate about the government's housing policies and treatment of those seeking residence permits.