Nearly 60 trees felled despite the presence of opponents

Around sixty trees were felled in a few hours on September 1 on the route of the A69, according to the Tarn prefecture, despite the presence on site, including in trees, of opponents of this controversial motorway. “The vast majority have been cut down: 59 trees. About ten still remain.” to be cut down, the prefecture told AFP early in the afternoon, adding that“There are four people still perched”.

The clearing of the construction site for the future Toulouse-Castres motorway began around midnight, “under the protection of law enforcement”according to the same source. “The gendarmes were the target of mortar fire and projectiles thrown from catapults”more “no harm to property or people is to be deplored”she continues in a press release.

Tree houses

In total, 17 arrests have been made since Friday, when anti-A69 activists were dislodged from a camp near the construction site in Saïx. However, several of them remained perched in trees, in the hope of preventing them from being cut down. The activists had built tree houses in advance to be able to retreat to them in the event of an intervention by the police, an AFP journalist noted. On Sunday early afternoon, the felling continued on the grounds of the former camp, under the gaze of around twenty opponents, an AFP photographer noted.

About fifty kilometres further on, in Verfeil, in Haute-Garonne, anti-A69 activists occupying another plot of land on the route of the future motorway claimed to have been victims of a second attempted arson during the night from Saturday to Sunday. Traces of fire were visible on the seat of a car, as well as at the entrance to the plot, where the mailbox had burned, an AFP journalist noted.

Following a complaint from these occupants, who reported similar events on the night of August 25 to 26, the Toulouse public prosecutor’s office opened an investigation to “damage to property by fire”The Castres public prosecutor’s office is also conducting an investigation into “degradation by fire” et “group violence” in an opponents’ camp in mid-August in the Tarn. In recent months, various damages have also occurred on the site, including fires of construction equipment, without however delaying the work, according to the motorway concessionaire Atosca.