France Vows Firm Response After Wave of Attacks on Prisons

France’s Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin vowed the government would not yield to "acts of intimidation" after a series of coordinated attacks targeted prisons across the country, which he described as "terrorist attacks."

Overnight Monday, assailants set vehicles ablaze outside multiple prisons and opened fire on a facility in Toulon with a Kalashnikov rifle. At least seven prisons were attacked, including in Toulon, Aix-en-Provence, Marseille, Valence, and Nîmes in southern France, as well as Villepinte and Nanterre near Paris.

Darmanin suggested the attacks, which began Sunday, were retaliation for the government’s intensified crackdown on drug trafficking. France’s anti-terrorism prosecutor has opened an investigation.

"We Will Not Be Intimidated"

During a visit to Toulon’s La Farlede prison—where gunmen fired on the entrance—Darmanin told reporters, "These are terrorist attacks," praising the prosecutor’s involvement as "extremely serious."

"Significant resources are being deployed to find the perpetrators, who will face extremely severe sentences," he said, linking the violence to efforts to disrupt drug networks operating from prisons.

Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau called for a "relentless" response, stating on X: "Those who attack prisons and officers deserve to be locked up in those prisons and monitored by those officers." He ordered heightened security at all prison facilities.

Prison guard unions expressed outrage. FO Justice condemned the "extremely serious" attacks, sharing images of burned vehicles and bullet-riddled gates. Ufap-Unsa Justice warned of insufficient staffing to secure prisons "24/7," noting staff cars were among those torched.

Drug Crackdown Sparks Backlash

No group has claimed responsibility, but graffiti reading "DDPF" ("Droits des Prisonniers Français" or "French Prisoners' Rights") and anarchist slogans were found at some sites. A source close to the investigation told AFP the attacks appeared coordinated and tied to anti-drug efforts.

Darmanin has proposed isolating drug lords in high-security prisons, while a new bill aims to create a specialized prosecutor for narcotics crimes. The crackdown follows a surge in gang violence and record cocaine seizures—53.5 tonnes in 2024, up 130% from 2023.

Early Wednesday, three more cars—including a prison guard’s vehicle—were torched in Tarascon. Darmanin accused traffickers of attempting to "destabilize the state" but vowed: "We are hitting them where it hurts."