Impakter
  • FINANCE
    • ESG News
    • Sustainable Finance
    • Business
  • TECH
    • Start-up
    • AI & Machine Learning
    • Green Tech
  • Environment
    • Biodiversity
    • Climate Change
    • Circular Economy
    • Energy
  • Industry News
    • Entertainment
    • Fashion & Lifestyle
    • Food and Agriculture
    • Health
    • Politics & Foreign Affairs
    • Philanthropy
    • Science
    • Sport
  • Editorial Series
    • SDGs Series
    • Shape Your Future
    • Sustainable Cities
      • Copenhagen
      • San Francisco
      • Seattle
      • Sydney
  • About us
    • Company
    • Team
    • Global Leaders
    • Partners
    • Write for Impakter
    • Contact Us
    • Privacy Policy
No Result
View All Result
  • FINANCE
    • ESG News
    • Sustainable Finance
    • Business
  • TECH
    • Start-up
    • AI & Machine Learning
    • Green Tech
  • Environment
    • Biodiversity
    • Climate Change
    • Circular Economy
    • Energy
  • Industry News
    • Entertainment
    • Fashion & Lifestyle
    • Food and Agriculture
    • Health
    • Politics & Foreign Affairs
    • Philanthropy
    • Science
    • Sport
  • Editorial Series
    • SDGs Series
    • Shape Your Future
    • Sustainable Cities
      • Copenhagen
      • San Francisco
      • Seattle
      • Sydney
  • About us
    • Company
    • Team
    • Global Leaders
    • Partners
    • Write for Impakter
    • Contact Us
    • Privacy Policy
No Result
View All Result
Impakter
No Result
View All Result
Home Equal Rights

Marseille Drug War Escalates to Include Child Victims

Violence in Marseille Claims the Life of a 14-Year-Old Boy

byAimee Braniff
September 8, 2021
in Equal Rights, Society
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Looking back, Marseille’s long criminal history and reputation as a drug trafficking capital can be traced to the “French Connection.” The French connection was a drug trafficking route through Marseille, established in the 1930’s when mafia leader Paul Carbone transported poppy seeds from Turkey to France via Marseille and then on to Canada and eventually the US to be used in the manufacturing of heroin. 

Back then, Marseille was one of the busiest ports in the Mediterranean, meaning shipments were harder to detect. With its reputation as a drug capital being cemented over the years and its status as France’s major port city, violence has grown in Marseille. In 2018 there were 23 gang-related deaths in France’s second city, in 2019 this climbed to 28 and this year gangland killings have claimed 15 lives, 12 since the beginning of the summer. While the numbers are shocking, it isn’t just this worrying escalation that has French citizens so scared.

In the Photo: A woman walks in a street in “Les marronniers” neighbourhood as a handwritting reads ‘State lets us down’ on the wall, on Aug. 30, 2021. Photo Credit: Nicolas TUCAT.

There is a concerning trend that the age of the victims seems to be decreasing. The latest victim, a boy named Rayanne, was shot dead by a young man on a scooter outside the Les Marronniers housing estate where he lived. Two other boys were wounded in the shooting, one aged 14, the other only eight.

Rayanne’s family insist he was just a normal boy, who attended school and enjoyed playing with friends, and that he was caught in the crossfire. Investigators however have evidence to the contrary, reporting that he was a chouffeur (lookout) paid by one of the gangs to patrol their turf. Whether he was an innocent victim or a target for a rival gang, a life lost at 14 has shaken Marseille.

Police, magistrates, social workers and local journalists all attest to the fact drug auxiliaries are getting progressively younger. One social worker spoke to Le Monde newspaper: “In 2010 the first time a 16-year-old was killed it was a thunderclap, but we thought it was a one-off. With the benefit of hindsight, we can see it was the start of a trend.”

An investigating magistrate told Le Monde that young people are being recruited by gangs via the Internet and many come from estates in other French cities. They say the gangs tell the young recruits that it is “like a summer job, but they’re much more vulnerable than the local lads because they’re so isolated.” 

Phillippe Pujol, a writer and expert on the poor northern neighbourhoods of Marseille, says many young recruits become indebted to gang leaders and some even dip into their supply. According to Pujol, “Young and in debt, they want to make big sales, so they push out further from their home turf. And that’s where the competition comes. They come up against other kids from other gangs, also playing high stakes.”


Related Articles: Blood in the Streets: Duterte’s Drug War | US Gun Industry Sued for Fueling Mexican Gangs

President Emmanuel Macron visited Marseille and the gangland violence formed the backdrop for his appearance. Residents pleaded with Macron for help on Wednesday. This surge in deadly shootings has put long-standing social problems on the political agenda. A social worker from Bassens told AFP ahead of Marcon’s arrival, “We’re scared…sometimes you hear shooting like it’s a Western film.” Citizens were asking for more police, public investment, and better housing as encounters with drug dealers are now a regular occurrence.

In the Photo: French President Emmanuel Macron speaks with local inhabitants of the Bassens district on the first day of a three-day visit in Marseille, southern France, on September 1, 2021. Photo Credit: LUDOVIC MARIN.

Just two weeks after Rayanne was shot, Macron told police officers on Wednesday, “We won’t give up…We have improved results. We’ll carry on, to the end, in making sure drug-dealing spots close permanently.” While his claims are accurate and death rates remain below those in 2016 and the particularly violent period in the 1980s, these tit-for-tat murders, as dubbed by the police, still give the impression the drug turf war in Marseille is not slowing down.

Local residents feel forgotten. As one told AFP, “Nobody cares what happens here…I get the sense that they [politicians] think, ‘let’s leave these paupers and foreigners to kill each other out there.’” 

Poverty and urban squalor have contributed to the hold the drug trade has over Marseille. People in these urban estates are desperate for money and at times the school system is failing young people. Mayor Benoit Payan told AFP, “the schools are unworthy of the republic” describing them as being in a “woeful” state. This combination has made easy targets of young people as gangs can promise them fast money in return for loyalty.

While drug gangs and turf wars may not be unique to Marseille, the decreasing age of victims, whether innocent bystanders or lookouts for gangs, is becoming a recurring theme that cannot be ignored. Marseille has a long-established reputation as an underworld for crime but it appears that now the heart of the city is under siege, with children caught in the middle of a drug war and no one offering any solutions yet.


Editor’s Note: The opinions expressed here by Impakter.com columnists are their own, not those of Impakter.com.— In the Featured Photo: Local inhabitants and police officers stand in front of a wall displaying prices of a drug sell point. Featured Photo Credit: LUDOVIC MARIN.

 

 

Tags: Drug Tradedrug warFranceFrench ConnectionMarseilleViolence
Previous Post

G20 Takes the Next Step in Making One Health a Priority

Next Post

Oil Spills in the Gulf of Mexico After Hurricane Ida Hits

Aimee Braniff

Aimee Braniff

Aimee obtained her Masters degree in English Literature from Ulster University. She is passionate about feminism and social justice. Having specialised in the Brontë’s at university, Aimee’s enthusiasm for the written word grew and it is there she realised she would like to pursue her own writing. She also freelances at a Media and Publishing company tackling social issues for Gen Z.

Related Posts

g7
Climate Change

The G7 at a Crossroads

June 12, 2025
US protests immigration
Society

What the 3.5% Rule Tells Us About Protest Success

June 11, 2025
Internet of Vehicles
Tech

The Smart Car of the Future Is Driving up the Information Superhighway

June 9, 2025
Next Post
Oil Spills in the Gulf of Mexico After Hurricane Ida Hits

Oil Spills in the Gulf of Mexico After Hurricane Ida Hits

Recent News

fashion Sustainability

Fashion Giants and Sustainability: 5 Brands Reshaping the Industry

June 13, 2025
ESG news regarding rise in oil prices and fall of stock market after Israel strikes Iran, 241 billion euros to be spent on nuclear projects in the EU, first fishery solar project in Taiwan, fashion industry greenwashing

Gold and Oil Up, Stocks Down After Israel Strikes Iran

June 13, 2025
BlackRock on Trial: The Antitrust Showdown That Could Redefine ESG Investing

BlackRock on Trial: The Antitrust Showdown That Could Redefine ESG Investing

June 13, 2025

Impakter informs you through the ESG news site and empowers your business CSRD compliance and ESG compliance with its Klimado SaaS ESG assessment tool marketplace that can be found on: www.klimado.com

Registered Office Address

Klimado GmbH
Niddastrasse 63,

60329, Frankfurt am Main, Germany


IMPAKTER is a Klimado GmbH website

Impakter is a publication that is identified by the following International Standard Serial Number (ISSN) is the following 2515-9569 (Printed) and 2515-9577 (online – Website).


Office Hours - Monday to Friday

9.30am - 5.00pm CEST


Email

stories [at] impakter.com

By Audience

  • TECH
    • Start-up
    • AI & MACHINE LEARNING
    • Green Tech
  • ENVIRONMENT
    • Biodiversity
    • Energy
    • Circular Economy
    • Climate Change
  • INDUSTRY NEWS
    • Entertainment
    • Fashion & Lifestyle
    • Food and Agriculture
    • Health
    • Politics & Foreign Affairs
    • Philanthropy
    • Science
    • Sport
    • Editorial Series

ESG/Finance Daily

  • ESG News
  • Sustainable Finance
  • Business

Klimado Platform

  • Klimado ESG Tool
  • Impakter News

About Us

  • Team
  • Global Leaders
  • Partners
  • Write for Impakter
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy

© 2025 IMPAKTER. All rights reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • FINANCE
    • ESG News
    • Sustainable Finance
    • Business
  • TECH
    • Start-up
    • AI & Machine Learning
    • Green Tech
  • Environment
    • Biodiversity
    • Climate Change
    • Circular Economy
    • Energy
  • Industry News
    • Entertainment
    • Fashion & Lifestyle
    • Food and Agriculture
    • Health
    • Politics & Foreign Affairs
    • Philanthropy
    • Science
    • Sport
  • Editorial Series
    • SDGs Series
    • Shape Your Future
    • Sustainable Cities
      • Copenhagen
      • San Francisco
      • Seattle
      • Sydney
  • About us
    • Company
    • Team
    • Global Leaders
    • Partners
    • Write for Impakter
    • Contact Us
    • Privacy Policy

© 2024 IMPAKTER. All rights reserved.