Lille (AFP)

A photo-journalist for the regional daily L'Union was seriously injured on Saturday in Reims, while he was covering groups of young people in the priority area of ​​the Red Cross, and an investigation has been opened for attempted murder, we learned. with the prefecture, the prosecution and the newspaper.

At around 3:00 p.m., "a journalist from the Union newspaper was attacked and seriously injured in circumstances still undetermined, but on a voluntary basis. I therefore opened an investigation for attempted murder, entrusted to the departmental security", a the public prosecutor of Reims, Matthieu Bourrette, told AFP.

The 65-year-old photographer "was taken care of by the Samu and transferred to the Reims University Hospital, with a vital prognosis", he said.

"It would seem" that he was covering "groups of young people, the prosecutor continued, indicating that no arrest has taken place at this stage.

The journalist "was found on the ground, around 3:30 p.m. in the Red Cross district (...). The police were there, had identified movements of young people, some of whom were carrying baseball bats. , and reinforcements had been called "to secure the neighborhood," Marne prefect Pierre N'Gahane told AFP.

The authorities have for the moment "no precise information on what happened, if he received any blows or a projectile. But he was on the ground, bleeding at the level of the ears," he said. he lamented.

Christian Lantenois, "was with a colleague of the local Reims", alerted "of an event in the district", which he joined "with a car flocked" with the logo of the newspaper, explained to AFP. one of the newspaper's two editors, Géraldine Baehr-Pastor.

"We do not know if he went out alone, or if someone took him out of the car," said co-editor Carole Lardot.

The colleague "only heard an altercation", before finding the photographer.

"The company strongly condemns this aggression. Nothing and no one will ever hinder our desire to inform or our freedom to act," responded the director general of the newspaper Daniel Picault, expressing his "thoughts" for the victim and his relatives ".

"The district remains a sensitive district. A year ago, just before confinement, there were two series of clashes between young people from this district and from another district," noted the prefect of Marne.

"My thoughts are with the photo-journalist seriously injured in the course of his work in Reims. Solidarity with the editorial staff of L'Union-L'Ardennais and the entire profession. The national police are fully mobilized to identify and question the authors, "Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin tweeted on Saturday evening.

"Today, the threshold of the unacceptable has been crossed (...) Beyond the ignominy of such an act, I want to express my fed up with this bunch of scoundrels who are rotting the life of our neighborhoods "LR mayor of Reims Arnaud Robinet said on Facebook.

The Minister of Culture, Roselyne Bachelot was also moved by a "cowardly aggression" in a tweet, expressing "solidarity" with the photographer and his editorial staff.

© 2021 AFP