Attacks were carried out on prisons in 6 regions of France. One prison was fired upon with automatic weapons, while vehicles in the parking lots of other prisons were set on fire.

It was announced that numerous prisons in France were attacked during the night hours. French Minister of Justice Gérald Darmanin confirmed the wave of attacks. Darmanin stated in a post from his X account that the attempts to intimidate prisons at night varied from setting vehicles on fire to firing with automatic weapons. The French newspaper La Parisien reported in its news about the attacks that vehicles in the parking lots of many prisons were set on fire and a prison in Toulon was targeted with shots fired from an automatic weapon. According to the newspaper, prisons in six regions including Toulon, Aix-en-Provence, Marseille, Valence, Nîmes, Luynes, Villepinte, and Nanterre were targeted.

JUSTICE MINISTER POINTED TO DRUG SMUGGLERS
Justice Minister Darmanin, in his statement about the attacks, said that he went to Toulon, where shots were fired at the prison with an automatic weapon, to support the officials affected by the incidents.

Without directly commenting on who was responsible for the attacks, the minister mentioned that the French government is “resisting drug trafficking” and taking measures that would “significantly disrupt” criminal networks.

UNION CALLS ON GOVERNMENT
The prison guard union FO Justice described the incidents in a post after the attacks as “extremely serious” and expressed their “deepest concern and anger.”

The union shared images of bullet holes in the windows of the Toulon prison and vehicles set on fire in other prison parking lots on their X account. The union called on the government to take action to protect prison staff.