A new wave of attacks hit French prison centers overnight, including a car arson attack outside Tarascon prison in southern France, the National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor’s Office said on Wednesday. Authorities have opened an investigation to identify those responsible for the mounting violence.
In another attack, a vehicle owned by an Aix-Luynes prison guard was set alight outside his home, and a door at a building in the Seine-et-Marne area was damaged. These attacks come two nights after a string of similar attacks on at least nine correctional facilities and related locations, including a school that trains prison guards.
Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin denounced the attacks, saying in an interview with CNews and Europe 1, “There are obviously people who are attempting to destabilise the state using intimidation. We will not give up. If the state gives way, it stops defending the French people.
Several of the crime scenes were marked with the graffiti “DDPF,” which some officials speculate might stand for “Droits des Detenus et Prisonniers Français” (French Prisoners’ Rights). This has raised suspicion of involvement from radical left-wing factions. But Darmanin added that the nature of the attacks some including AK-47 fire targeting prison entrances suggests more of a connection to organised crime networks.
“Strict action is being taken, and traffickers are hitting back,” said Darmanin. “Other countries have sunk into the web of narcobanditism… France hasn’t yet, but the threat is there.”
Regardless of huge drug seizures, the lucrative European cocaine trade, which is largely driven by South American imports, has encouraged criminal networks. What started in inner-city drug hubs such as Marseille is now extending to towns of a smaller size across France, most of which are not used to such levels of organised criminal violence.
Security officials have reported there is no evidence at present of overseas participation in the attacks.
