Several Paris police officers are in trouble after photos surfaced of them in blackface at a "negro" party, French media report.

In one photo, a man has bananas on his lap and is scratching himself in the manner of a monkey.

Another shows five people, some of them wearing frizzy or dreadlock wigs, dressed in what seems to be improvised African garb. All sport big smiles.

The party was meant to be private, but former racial equality official Claudy Siar posted the images, saying he'd been alerted to them by a friend who had seen them elsewhere on Facebook.

The original poster, who has since removed the photos, said they were just "fun" between friends who'd had a "negro" evening, the French daily Le Figaro reported.

The five officers, whose names were not published, face an internal review. It's not clear what sort of disciplinary action they may face.