Eleven far-left extremists have been arrested in France in connection with the murder of 23-year-old right-wing activist Quentin Deranque, who was beaten by far-left extremists and later died in hospital from his injuries last week.
Among those detained is Jacques-Élie Favrot, a parliamentary assistant employed by a deputy from the far-left France Unbowed (LFI) party, led by Jean-Luc Mélenchon. Reacting to the news, Mélenchon said his party has ‘nothing to do with the story,’ adding that ‘those who accuse us are committing libel.’ ‘We express our consternation, but also our empathy and compassion for [Deranque’s] family and friends. We have said dozens of times that we oppose all forms of violence,’ he added.
According to investigators, the suspects are also linked to La Jeune Garde, a far-left militant group that has been banned.
Deranque was attacked last Thursday, 12 February, near Lyon’s Institute of Political Studies (Sciences Po), where he was part of an informal security group present during a demonstration organized by Collectif Némésis, a women’s rights organization. During the assault, Deranque suffered a severe head injury and was taken to hospital in critical condition, where he died two days later. According to the organizers, one of their female members was also attacked.
Leader of the right-wing National Rally Jordan Bardella reacted to the arrests by stating that Mélenchon bore ‘moral and political responsibility’ for the violence, arguing that he had effectively ‘opened the doors of the National Assembly to suspected murderers’. He also called for the LFI lawmaker connected to the murder to resign and urged other parties to apply a cordon sanitaire to LFI in response to extreme political violence.
The killing in Lyon comes amid broader European concerns over far-left political violence. In Hungary, German Antifa activist Maja T—born Simeon T—was recently sentenced to eight years in prison for participating in a series of coordinated street attacks in Budapest in February 2023 that left multiple victims seriously injured. Just days before the conviction of Maja T, Antifa-linked extremists clashed with Italian police, brutally beating one of them during a violent march in Turin. Shortly afterwards, the aftermath of the Winter Olympics opening ceremony turned into similar clashes between far-left extremists and police in Milan.
Due to the increasing violence, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni introduced a new ‘law and order’ package granting police broader powers to manage violent demonstrations, including detaining individuals for up to 12 hours before protests, stricter rules on knives and weapons, legal protections for officers acting in the line of duty, and faster procedures for evicting illegally occupied buildings.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s government designated Antifa, the far-left umbrella organization coordinating these groups, as a terrorist organization last year.
Related articles:
