This Monday, November 9, the prefect of Côte-d’Or Fabien Sudry and the mayor of Dijon François Rebsamen wanted to thank them.
Following the Nice attacks at the end of October, the government decided, as announced by the President of the Republic, to strengthen Operation Sentinel by 4,000 men, thus increasing the number of troops from 3,000 to 7,000 deployed throughout the territory. national, including therefore in Côte-d’Or which benefits from this increase.
The prefecture explains: “Following the passage to the” emergency attack “level of the Vigipirate posture on the whole of the national territory, the Sentinel patrols in the department of Côte-d’Or have been greatly reinforced and now have 70 soldiers who ensure , in close coordination with the forces of the national police, the national gendarmerie but also the municipal police, the protection of the population of the department.
The Sentinel soldiers will be deployed as a priority, on foot or motorized patrol, in the municipalities of the metropolis of Dijon but also in Beaune, Montbard and wherever their presence is necessary. As a priority, they will ensure the security of the surroundings of sensitive rights-of-way, such as places of worship, schools, health establishments and public buildings ”.
“A commitment to the safety of the French”
This Monday at the beginning of the afternoon, it is in the main courtyard of the Hôte de Ville that the meeting was given. Several patrols that arrived ten days ago were presented by Lieutenant-Colonel Étienne Royal, deputy departmental military delegate, to the prefect of Côte-d’Or Fabien Sudry, to his chief of staff Danyl Afsoud, to the mayor of Dijon François Rebsamen and his deputy Benoît Bordat, in this case delegate for national defense. The opportunity to highlight their mobilization, “this commitment to the safety of the French” according to Fabien Sudry.
“It will gradually fade but there is still great concern from the parents of the pupils”, remarked François Rebsamen, welcoming the soldiers: “Your presence is a reassuring element for the population”. It will be understood, this concern is one of the after-effects of the terrible attack of which Samuel Paty, a history and geography teacher near his school in Conflans-Sainte-Honorine, was the victim on October 16.
“Being able to respond to any degree of threat”
Lieutenant-Colonel Étienne Royal recalls: “We are deployed day and night for the safety of the population”. Protection and deterrence are the two priorities of missions operated by armed men “to be able to respond to any degree of threat”, in public or private places conducive to the gathering of people.
In the current health context, the panel of surveillance has been reduced, we may say, but not the system deployed, as we have noted. The presence of soldiers in the streets? “People no longer have too many questions related to that. They know that the operation has been part of the Vigipirate plan since 2015 ”, assures Etienne Royal. As for strategy, the military insists on “varied modes of action so that the operation is as unpredictable as possible in the face of potential attacks”.
The target locations to be supervised and secured are defined by the prefecture after consultation with the local authorities as well as the Police and Gendarmerie forces.
Alix Berthier
Photos: Alix Berthier
Reinforced surveillance around schools in Dijon
Activation of the Vigipirate plan reinforced at the level of the attack in Côte-d’Or
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