a booming market

In Rennes (Ille-et-Vilaine), where a 5-year-old boy was injured in a shooting last week, residents testify to a daily life punctuated by drug trafficking. Drug trafficking is constantly growing in France. 140 tonnes were seized last year, up 12% compared to 2022. Drugs are flowing everywhere in the territory. The market is estimated by the authorities at 3.5 billion euros and would employ 240,000 people.

To hinder traffic, the government launched “clearance” operations, a sudden and massive deployment of CRS at deal points. Out of hundreds of operations, a small quantity of cocaine was seized. “This is no way to fight against drugs”estimates Mr. Gilles Leclair, former Marseille police prefect. According to a parliamentary commission of inquiry, it is urgent to create a national anti-narcotics prosecutor's office, but also to hit the traffickers' wallets more.

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