French police have arrested a 40-year-old far-left extremist in connection with the devastating arson attack on Limoges Town Hall during nationwide riots on Saturday, 17 October. The suspect, reportedly already flagged as a national security threat, was detained on Tuesday, 20 October, as France’s anti-terrorism investigators joined the investigation into the destruction of the historic building.
The man was arrested at approximately 6:15am by officers from the elite RAID unit in Val-d’Issoire, around 50 kilometres from Limoges. According to Le Parisien, police sources described him as an ‘ultra-left activist’ already on France’s so-called ‘fiche S’ security watchlist and known to authorities for violence against police and other public officials. Limoges prosecutor Émilie Abrantes confirmed the arrest, and the suspect was placed in police custody for questioning.
Visegrád 24 on X (formerly Twitter): “BREAKING:The arsonist of Limoges city hall has been detainedHe is a 40-year-old far-left Antifa activist on France’s national security watch list for his ties to radical ultra-left extremist movements.He also has a history of police records for “violence against a person… / X”
BREAKING:The arsonist of Limoges city hall has been detainedHe is a 40-year-old far-left Antifa activist on France’s national security watch list for his ties to radical ultra-left extremist movements.He also has a history of police records for “violence against a person…
The investigation, initially opened for ‘destruction of property by dangerous means as part of an organized group’, has also been referred to France’s Anti-Terrorism Sub-Directorate (SDAT). Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin said on Monday that the National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor’s Office was considering whether to take over the case.
The arrest comes three days after masked far-left militants set fire to Limoges’s 143-year-old town hall, a 19th-century architectural landmark and symbol of French republican heritage. The blaze destroyed its roof, caused the collapse of its 43-metre bell tower and devastated much of the interior. Haute-Vienne prefect Maurice Barate described the destruction as a ‘heritage catastrophe’.
Limoges Mayor Guillaume Guérin, a member of the centre-right Republicans, accused organized ultra-left militants of deliberately targeting the building. Speaking to Le Monde on Sunday, he said around 500–600 far-left activists had infiltrated a demonstration of around 5,000 people. The attackers arrived equipped with mortars and a 200-kilogram battering ram, while anarchist, Palestinian and New Anticapitalist Party flags were visible among the militants.
‘The ultra-left organized the logistics. They had prepared their attack and knew how to get inside,’ Guérin said. He also criticized serious failures in the police response, claiming that national police had exhausted their riot-control ammunition and left the town hall unprotected for approximately an hour. Municipal employees reportedly received death threats as rioters forced their way inside.
The destruction of Limoges Town Hall was among the many symbolic attacks during Saturday’s nationwide far-left unrest, which also saw masked militants storm the Paris headquarters of three conservative media outlets, CNews, Europe 1 and Le Journal du Dimanche. In Marseille, rioters vandalized city hall and toppled a bust of Marianne, the female personification of the French Republic, while other public buildings were attacked across the country.
The riots marked another escalation in weeks of violent protests that began in September over deteriorating school conditions in immigrant-heavy districts before being taken over by Antifa and far-left groups, including Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s France Unbowed (LFI) party. More than 2,400 people were arrested during the weekend unrest, while nearly 1,000 police officers and gendarmes were injured.
Related articles:
The post Far-Left Extremist Arrested over Limoges Town Hall Arson as Terror Probe Looms appeared first on Hungarian Conservative.