The 22-year-old Amine is one of the highest-profile crusaders against the narcotics trade in Marseille, the southern port city that for decades has failed to curb drug-related violence. He was profiled in the New York Times last year.
Benoît Payan, the center-left mayor of Marseille, struck a similar tone as Darmanin, stating that the crime would usher the fight against drug trafficking into “a new era” if its intimidation motive is confirmed.
In the wake of such brazen violence, security issues have become a top concern for voters ahead of municipal elections set for spring 2026, surveys show. An Ifop poll released Sunday showed security was the top concern ahead of those elections for 76 percent of voters.
More than 10 percent of homicides last year were related to drug trafficking, per Interior Ministry statistics. The French government has since responded by doubling down on its war-on-drugs strategy, backing new legislation to give law enforcement agents and justice officials more leverage to go after traffickers.
But the intense focus on repression has its critics.
“We’re acting like the U.S. did when they had prohibition, which led to the mafia,” said Eric Coquerel, the head of the public finances committee in the French National Assembly and a prominent member of the hard-left France Unbowed movement.