Latest news with #FOJustice
New York Times
15-04-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Attackers Target Prisons in France, Burning Vehicles and Firing Shots
Attackers targeted a prison near the French port city of Toulon overnight Monday to Tuesday, burning vehicles and firing shots at its walls, French authorities and a union said on Tuesday, adding that this was part of a series of attacks on the country's prisons. There were no reports of casualties. A union for prison workers, FO Justice, posted photos on X, formerly Twitter, of bullet holes in prison walls, saying that prisons had been attacked in the north, center and south of the country. The office of France's counterterrorism prosecutor said it would begin an investigation into the violence, which it said started on Sunday. The justice minister, Gérald Darmanin, said he would visit the Toulon-La Farlède prison on Tuesday in support of the officers there. Mr. Darmanin suggested that drug traffickers had organized the attacks. The French newspaper Le Monde said the attacks were coordinated and mentioned other incidents in Villepinte and Nanterre, both suburbs of Paris; Valence, a city in southern France; and the southern port city of Marseille. 'Prisons are facing intimidation attempts ranging from the burning of vehicles to automatic gunfire,' Mr. Darmanin said in a post on social media. 'The republic is confronted by drug trafficking and will take measures that will massively disrupt these criminal networks.' France's interior minister, Bruno Retailleau, condemned the attacks, saying the prisons had been targeted by thugs, and ordered the authorities to reinforce security at prisons and protect their workers. France's official prison watchdog warned in 2023 of overcrowding, unsanitary conditions and violence in the country's prisons.
Local France
15-04-2025
- Politics
- Local France
Cars torched and bullet holes found outside French prisons
In recent months Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin and Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau have vowed to intensify the fight against narcotics and drug-related crime. 'All this appeared to have been coordinated and is clearly linked to the anti-drug gang strategy,' a source told AFP after the incidents recorded overnight to Tuesday. 'The republic is face to face with drug trafficking, and is taking measures that will seriously disrupt criminal networks,' Darmanin himself said on X, promising a 'firm and courageous' response from the government. According to prison staff union FO Justice, 'vehicles were torched, prison gates set on fire, and even targeted with heavy guns'. Three vehicles, including two belonging to prison staff, were set on fire in the car park of the Villepinte prison, north of Paris, a police source said. A fuel canister was found on site, and CCTV footage showed two individuals torching cars. Cars parked outside three other prisons – one near Paris and two in southern France – were also set on fire, another police source said. In a prison in Toulon, on France's southern coast, 15 bullet impacts were found on the front gate following an attack with a Kalashnikov-style assault weapon, FO Justice said. In a prison in nearby Aix, two vehicles were set on fire and the gate of the local ERIS prison surveillance unit was damaged, the union added. Advertisement Overnight Sunday to Monday, fires had already been set in the parking lots of a prison staff training centre and a prison near Paris, several sources said. 'These criminal acts are a full-on attack on our institution, on the republic and the staff who serve the republic every day,' FO Justice said, calling for a 'strong, clear response by the government'. Wilfried Fonck, national secretary for Ufap Unsa Justice, another union, told AFP that the prison system did not have enough staff to secure prison perimeters '24/7'. Anarchist slogans were found at some of the attack sites, and police are keeping all lines of investigation open, a source close to the case said.
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
French prisons targeted with arson, gunfire: ministry
Cars have been set on fire near several prisons in France while one was targeted with automatic gunfire, in possible retaliation against government anti-drug policies, justice ministry officials said on Tuesday. In recent months Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin and Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau have vowed to intensify the fight against narcotics and drug-related crime. "All this appeared to have been coordinated and is clearly linked to the anti-drug gang strategy" introduced by Darmanin, a source close to the matter told AFP after the incidents recorded overnight to Tuesday. "The republic is face to face with drug trafficking, and is taking measures that will seriously disrupt criminal networks," Darmanin himself said on X, promising a "firm and courageous" government response. According to prison staff union FO Justice, "vehicles were torched, prison gates set on fire, and even targeted with heavy guns." Three vehicles, including two belonging to prison staff, were set on fire in the car park of the Villepinte prison north of Paris, a police source said. A fuel canister was found on site, and CCTV footage showed two individuals torching cars. Cars parked outside three other prisons, one near Paris and two in southern France, were also set on fire, another police source said. In a prison in Toulon, on France's southern coast, 15 bullet impacts were found on the front gate following an attack with a "Kalashnikov-type" assault weapon, FO Justice said. In a prison in nearby Aix, two vehicles were set on fire and the gate of the local ERIS prison surveillance unit was damaged, the union added. Overnight Sunday to Monday, fires had already been set in the parking lots of a prison staff training centre and a prison near Paris, several sources said. "These criminal acts are a full-on attack on our institution, on the republic and the staff who serve the republic every day," FO Justice said, calling for a "strong, clear response by the government". Wilfried Fonck, national secretary for Ufap Unsa Justice, another union, told AFP that the prison system did not have enough staff to secure prison perimeters "24/7". Anarchist slogans were found at some of the attack sites, and police are keeping all lines of investigation open, a source close to the case said. edy-spe-amd-mca/jh/as/sbk
Times of Oman
15-04-2025
- Politics
- Times of Oman
France: Several prisons targeted with wave of arson attacks
Paris: French Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin said on Tuesday that several prisons in France were attacked overnight. He said the attacks seemed to be linked to government efforts to clamp down on drug trafficking. Darmanin said that prisons were being targeted with fire and even heavy weapons. "Prisons are facing intimidation attempts ranging from vehicle burning to automatic weapon fire," he posted on social media. Several facilities were attacked during the night into Tuesday, with officials saying that Toulon-La Farlede was targeted with heavy gunfire. "I am travelling to Toulon to support the officers involved," Darmanin said. "The Republic is facing drug trafficking and is taking measures that will profoundly disrupt criminal networks. It [France] is challenged and will be firm and courageous." According to a statement from the prison union FO Justice, "vehicles were burned, entrance doors set on fire, and even targeted by heavy weapons fire." At the Villepinte remand center in the Paris region, closed circuit footage showed two perpetrators entering the facility via an earth mound, each setting fire to a vehicle, with a third being damaged by the spread of the fire. Police sources said vehicles were also set alight at facilities in Nanterre near Paris and the two southeastern prisons of Aix-Luynes and Valence. At Toulon-La Farlede, 15 impacts were recorded on the facility's door after a "heavy weapon attack, Kalashnikov-style." From Sunday night into Monday, fires were also set in the parking lot of the National School of Penitentiary Administration (ENAP) and Raau prison in the Paris region. What prison unions are saying "These criminal acts are a frontal attack against our institution, against the Republic, and against the officers who serve it daily," FO Justice said. The union demanded "a strong, immediate, and unambiguous response from the state." Another union, UFAP Unsa Justice, told the AFP news agency that the prison administration did not have "the human resources to ensure 24-hour security around the facilities." Since his appointment, Darmanin has expressed his desire to isolate France's 100 biggest drug traffickers in a high-security prison. The French parliament is also currently reviewing a law to "free France from the trap of drug trafficking," which includes the creation of a National Prosecutor's Office for Organised Crime (PNACO).
Euronews
15-04-2025
- Politics
- Euronews
Several prisons in France attacked with guns fired and vehicles burned
ADVERTISEMENT Attacks have been carried out on several prisons in France, which involved weapons being fired and vehicles set on fire, the country's justice minister said on Tuesday. On Monday night, the entrance to a prison in Toulon was shot at with an automatic weapon, while vehicles were torched in the car parks of several prisons, according to various French media reports and posts shared on social media. In addition to Toulon, prisons were reportedly targeted in Aix-en-Provence and Marseille, Valence and Nîmes, Luynes, Nanterre and Villepinte. France's Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin wrote in a post on X that prisons had faced "intimidation attempts", and said he was going to Toulon to support affected officers. "The French Republic is facing up to the problem of drug trafficking and is taking measures that will massively disrupt the criminal networks," he added. A source close to the case told French media that the attacks appeared to be coordinated and "clearly linked to the minister's anti-narcobanditry strategy". The French government in February launched a new campaign against drug trafficking, vowing to tackle rising gang violence and deaths linked to growing cocaine imports. Related Greece strengthens military with 16 anti-ship missiles from France France's united front against Mercosur deal starts to show cracks In a post on X on Tuesday, France's prison guard union, FO Justice, shared its "deepest concern and anger" following the "extremely serious" attacks overnight. The union demanded "a strong, immediate, and unambiguous response from the state". Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau has asked local administrations in France to "immediately strengthen the protection of officers and institutions" following the attacks. "The state's response must be relentless," he wrote on X. "Those who attack prisons and their officers deserve to be locked up in those prisons and monitored by those officers."
