Shots were fired at police during rioting in Paris that was sparked by the deaths of two youths in a crash involving a police car.
Dozens of youths pelted a police station in the suburb of Sarcelles with petrol bombs.
Shots were fired at officers and a police captain was taken to hospital with a serious injury to the face after he tried to negotiate with the mob, a police union official said.
The youths also torched several cars and set rubbish bins alight, officials said.
Reinforcements were called in to secure the police station.
The clash came hours after a motorcycle crashed into a patrol car in the nearby town of Villiers-le-Bel. The rider and passenger, aged 15 and 16, were both killed.
Police officials said the two were riding a mini-motorcycle and that neither was wearing a helmet.
"We are sorry about the death of these young people, but it appears that they were unfortunately the victims of a traffic accident," said Francis Debuire, of the Force Ouvriere police union.
Rumours had circulated that officers in the patrol car were responsible for the crash.
In late 2005, the accidental deaths of two youths who were electrocuted as they hid from police sparked weeks of riots in the poor, immigrant-heavy suburbs that ring many French cities. Thousands of cars and many public buildings were torched during the unrest.
AP