Three men were shot dead and two others injured in two assault rifle attacks in Marseille, southern France, over the weekend.
According to the newspaper La Provence, the perpetrators probably shot their victims with a Kalashnikov during the crimes, which are believed to be settlements in the drug milieu.
The second attack was possibly in retaliation for the first bloody deed.
With the three deaths, the death toll in gang warfare in the Marseille area has risen to 28 this year.
First, on Saturday evening, two men shot dead a 21-year-old from a scooter.
Two other men were injured, the newspaper reported.
The victim, who was still trying to escape to a bar, was shot twice in the neck.
Investigators found 36 shell casings at the crime scene.
The background is still unclear, the 21-year-old was known to the police.
Two men on the sidewalk were fired on from a car on Sunday evening, and they died of their injuries in hospital.
The suspected gunman's car was later found burned out nearby.
Last year, 30 people died in 35 clashes in the drug milieu in Marseille.
As the newspaper "Le Monde" reported with reference to the public prosecutor's office, the victims are getting younger and younger.
In 2021 their average age was 26, this year 25 years.
In fights over drug sales points in the high-rise settlements on the outskirts, shooters are ready to eliminate a member of the opposing side for as little as 10,000 euros, reports "Le Monde".
Two out-of-town crooks who wanted to get involved in the business in Marseille were found in their bullet-riddled car on the city motorway three weeks ago, and a third escaped after being shot.
The authorities recently tried to fight drug trafficking in France's second largest city more effectively with a massive police crackdown.
With eleven additional mobile units, the Ministry of the Interior intends to take more vigorous action against drug trafficking and other crimes in other metropolises.