Maximilien Carlier, correspondent in Pas-de-Calais / Photo credit: YANN AVRIL / BIOSGARDEN / BIOSPHOTO VIA AFP
2:20 p.m., September 16, 2024
Three hunters, who had informed the police of the plan to cross the Channel by dozens of migrants, were violently attacked by the latter seeking retaliation. Adrien was part of the trio attacked and confided his trauma to Europe 1.
A scene of rare violence. On the night of Sunday to Monday, in the Tardinghen marsh (Pas-de-Calais), three men accompanied by a 3-year-old child were targeted by around sixty migrants. These three hunters had warned the police of the exiles' attempt to cross the Channel and therefore suffered reprisals from them.
“Mentally, it's hard, I can still see them tearing ducks out of cages to tear off their heads,” says Adrien, still in shock. “We know very well that they are going into the sea and that they are risking their lives,” he adds, referring to the aborted plan of these migrants, deprived of a crossing.
“They had iron bars, machetes, axes”
Mad with rage at not having been able to leave with their Zodiac, the latter – about ten to start with – rushed to the hunters' hut. “They had iron bars, machetes, axes. It was truly a horrible scene. We saw ourselves dying, we saw the hatred of the people towards us”. After more than 2 hours of nightmare, the police intervened and the three men were escorted out of the marsh.
“Honestly, even though we had weapons, we were all petrified, shocked. In our heads, we know very well that we are not going to shoot a human,” continues Adrien, traumatized. “Never again in my life will I go back here,” concludes this hunter who claims to be uncomfortable in his own skin and is being monitored by a doctor.
