This Friday morning, a high school in the 8th arrondissement of Lyon was the target of mortar fire and fireworks. Here is what we know about the origin and repercussions of this attack.
Around 7:30 a.m. this Friday, November 10 morning, the students and teaching staff of the La Martinière-Monplaisir high school were surprised by intense explosions caused by multiple mortar shots and fireworks in the direction of the establishment. However, no injuries were reported.
• Mortars and scooters burned
A dozen individuals showed up in the early morning of Friday, November 10 near the La Martinière-Monplaisir high school, located in the 8th arrondissement of Lyon.
Hooded, the troublemakers notably fired fireworks mortars. They also set fire to trash cans and scooters located not far from the entrance to the establishment.
• Two people arrested
Following these events, significant “technical and scientific police resources” were put in place in order to find the perpetrators of the damage, assured the Minister of the Interior Gérald Darmanin, Friday evening on BFM TV.
A mobilization which, according to him, explains that “two of these delinquents” have already been arrested. In addition, among the participants in the damage according to the minister, there are “young people” including one who attends school in the establishment. The student who must “be the subject of a disciplinary council”.
• The principal, “shocked”, was probably targeted
During his appearance on BFM TV, Gérald Darmanin also wanted to support the principal of the La Martinière-Monplaisir high school.
According to information from BFM Lyon, the perpetrators of the shootings notably targeted the high school principal. The damage that occurred this Friday would, in fact, be reprisals against the director of the high school, after the summons to the disciplinary council of a young man educated at the high school.
On BFM Lyon, Gérard Heinz, academic secretary of SNPDEN-UNSA, a union representing school management staff, considered that the facts could be qualified as “attempted homicide”.
Gérard Heinz explains that he was in contact several times with the high school principal during the day. “He is doing well physically. He is rather calm, he is someone experienced and well surrounded. However, inevitably, he is angry and shocked,” the union representative noted in particular.
• Significant political reactions
The images, impressive to say the least, made the rounds in the media during the day on Friday and sparked a cascade of reactions, particularly in the political sphere. The mayor of Lyon Grégory Doucet (EELV), on X, mentioning “shocking” images, “strongly condemned this attack of incredible violence”.
At the top of the school hierarchy, Minister Gabriel Attal issued a statement on X (formerly Twitter) in reaction to the attack on the high school later on Friday.
“It is therefore the authority of the School, for which I am fighting, which is challenged here. The authority of the School, we do not contest it, we do not take revenge: we respect it “I will not deviate from this line and will continue to support the initiation of disciplinary sanctions whenever necessary. Because there is no serenity without firmness”, said Gabriel Attal indignantly.
• Students say they are used to it
Following the events, BFM Lyon was able to collect testimonies from students at the La Martinière-Monplaisir high school. They particularly expressed their “habit” to seeing this type of event occur near their high school.
“We know that Friday morning is that, but in fact it is becoming more and more dangerous,” said a student. “Basically it is a good school, but now it is tarnishing this image.”
Philippine, another high school student, explains that “not many people panicked because it was the third time it happened, three Fridays in a row.”
• The inter-union criticizes the lack of resources
Finally, at the very end of the afternoon, the establishment’s teachers’ union issued a press release in reaction to the events that occurred the same morning.
While confirming that it is “an act of revenge or an intimidation operation mounted by the sanctioned student and relatives”, the inter-union insisted on denouncing “the media exploitation, fueled by elected officials from the region and even national elected officials, on the theme of insecurity”.
According to the teachers, “two elected officials from the region were premade to appear on television! This self-serving exploitation can only make the problems worse without resolving anything or even asking the real questions.”
The inter-union denounces in fact “the lack of human and educational resources to deal with the evolution of high school students, the change in the school map, the hardening of relations with the school of some of the students, the difficulties caused by the conditions in which many of our students live.
“We need human resources, time to meet families, enough to take students in small groups, sometimes individually and all this without doing it in the form of overtime, nor in the form of a Pact which adds work and charges, when we already have a lot.”, estimates the inter-union.
• An additional police presence
Finally, the question of security around the school establishment arises. In this sense, the municipality of Lyon, through its security deputy Mohamed Chihi, announced that it had requested that police patrols be carried out on site.
“Following the attack on the La Martinière-Monplaisir high school, the mayor of Lyon and I requested the establishment of national and municipal police patrols around the establishment as soon as the alert was received and for the next few days,” wrote Mohamed Chihi on X.
“The seizure of video surveillance images will shed light on this unacceptable attack,” he added in a second post on the social network.