Gérald Darmanin confirmed Thursday, April 21 the forthcoming launch of an operation against delinquency and illegal immigration in Mayotte, already widely rumored in the media, without however giving a date.
The Minister of the Interior, who gave an interview to the Figarohad not spoken on the subject since the revelations of the chained duckin February.
Gérald Darmanin confirmed the shipment in recent days to the archipelago of “four squadrons of mobile gendarmes, police officers from the CRS-8, specialists in the fight against urban violence, a total of 510 members of the police force”. “Public order operations in Mayotte are every day”he said, brushing aside the question of the date.
With regard to the legal aspect, “six magistrates and seven clerks, as well as fifteen agents of the judicial protection of youth (PJJ)”were dispatched.
Baptized “Wuambushu”, which can mean in Mahorais both “recovery” and “itchy hair”, the operation was approved by Emmanuel Macron in the defense council and should begin next week, according to a source close to the file. It should last at least two months, according to information obtained by Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Last minute deals
“We are going to redouble our activity” against local delinquency thanks to these reinforcements, promises the minister. In total, “about forty organized criminal gangs” have been identified in Mayotte, he said. The objective is also to expel illegal immigrants, mostly from the neighboring archipelago of the Comoros, settled in particularly unhealthy neighborhoods, called “bangas”.
“We will take the time necessary” for the destruction of these habitats, “always with the authorization of the judge, because it goes without saying that we relocate people, in accordance with the law”assures Gérald Darmanin.
Several associations, including the League for Human Rights (LDH), expressed concern in a joint statement that “France thus places minors in situations of intolerable vulnerability and danger”. The Comorian President, Azali Assoumani for his part wished the cancellation of the operation, while acknowledging that he had no “not the means to [la] stop by force ». Intense negotiations have taken place in recent weeks between Moroni and Paris, raising the possibility of a last-minute agreement.