‘I’d rather die than stay here’: Unfit housing on the rise in Paris suburb hosting Olympic village

With broken windows and walls covered with mould, 49-year-old security guard Belkheir is desperate to move out of the tiny studio apartment he has lived in for the past 17 years. However, he is unable to afford anything more expensive on the private market and his requests for social housing have been repeatedly turned down. His apartment is just one of an estimated 4,500 unfit or substandard homes in the Paris suburb of Saint-Denis – home of the Olympic village for the 2024 Paris Games – and the problem is only getting worse.