A curfew was imposed in Philadelphia on Friday evening, as National Guard forces were deployed in metropolitan Pennsylvania.

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Michael Perez / AP / SIPA

A curfew was imposed again in Philadelphia on Friday evening.

"The curfew will go into effect tonight from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m.," tweeted City Mayor Jim Kenney.

People will only be able to go out to work, if they need medical or urgent help, or to cast their ballot.

A similar curfew had already been introduced Wednesday evening, then lifted Thursday.

The Democratic mayor added that the National Guard had been "deployed around strategic government buildings or other infrastructure".

Units could also be if necessary "sent to commercial zones", the scene of looting in recent days.

While this predominantly democratic metropolis is already tense with the approach of the presidential election on Tuesday, the city councilor stressed that the presence of the National Guard was "not linked to the elections", but "to the troubles of this week".

The measures come as Philadelphia expects more protests this weekend, amid pre-election tensions and a further rise in coronavirus cases.

The two police officers were suspended and an investigation was opened

The unrest began on Monday evening, after a video was posted on social media showing the death of a 27-year-old man, Walter Wallace Junior, shot dead in the street by two police officers at West Philadephia.

Police, responding to a family dispute call, said they ordered the man to throw in the knife he was armed with.

According to her, Walter Wallace refused to comply with the injunctions of the agents.

But according to the family lawyer, the man suffered from bipolar disorders and these disorders, in view of the images of the webcams on board by the police, were "clearly" perceptible during the tragedy.

These images have not yet been made public.

The mayor said Friday, after consulting the family, that they would be broadcast on November 4, "hoping that the delay will ease tensions and broadcast these recordings constructively."

The two police officers, whose names were not disclosed, were suspended and an investigation was opened.

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