Geoffrey Branger 1:59 p.m., October 02, 2022, modified at 2:00 p.m., October 02, 2022

In Grenoble, Nantes, Strasbourg, Dijon... Some residents say they are in a situation of insecurity in their city and are stepping up to fight against the increase in violence.

For Matthieu Valet, spokesman for the Independent Union of Police Commissioners, insecurity is caused by drug trafficking.

Is insecurity around every corner?

To believe the recent events that mark the French news, the insecurity felt by the French is on the increase.

On Saturday, a shooting broke out in a bar in a district of Grenoble and a chase followed with the police.

In Nantes, residents and traders demonstrated on Saturday against the rise in violence, after several miscellaneous events.

In Strasbourg, a petition denounced the growing insecurity in the city.

And in Dijon, drug trafficking is constantly increasing. 

According to the police, insecurity is caused by drug trafficking.

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The situation is not unprecedented

"We have neighborhoods that are under the ax of thugs and dealers who control the entry of residents through identity checks in blocks of buildings, which generate settling of scores through street transactions, through quarters squared, by inhabitants who are taken hostage … It will still take a very long time to eradicate [these deal points], you close one, another opens”, assures Matthieu Valet, spokesperson for the Independent Union of Commissioners from police.

The public authorities know this and have emphasized the fight against drug trafficking.

But what the French notice is above all the explosion in the number of attacks on people.

"You have your child who takes the lead on social networks with another child, at the playground, he can take a stab wound. You meet an individual on the road to whom you refuse priority, you can you take a punch or a stab wound”, lists the spokesperson.

gratuitous violence has increased by more than 25%

"Afterwards, there is the inquisitive violence, where in the street a thug snatches your handbag, necklace, mobile phone. We can see that the daily life of people today is violence against people. , whether they are free or [whether they are] to steal valuables from them", regrets Matthieu Valet.

According to data from police headquarters, gratuitous violence increased by more than 25% in the first half of 2022 compared to last year.