In an interview with AFP, the Minister of the Interior asked the American government to strengthen their counterterrorism cooperation.
He was on a two-day visit to the United States, between Washington and New York. In an interview with AFP in New York on Friday, May 19, the Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, was alarmed by a “reprise” of the threat “Islamic terrorist” in Europe. He also asked the US government to strengthen their counterterrorism cooperation before the Paris Olympics in 2024.
“We came to remind them that for Europeans and for France, the primary risk is Sunni Islamist terrorism and that anti-terrorist collaboration between intelligence services is absolutely essential”underlined Gérald Darmanin. “At a time when Americans may have a more national vision of the protests – white supremacism, repeated shootings, conspiracy – they must not forget what appears to us in Europe as the primary threat: Sunni terrorism”insisted the French minister.
“The risk resumes”
Gérald Darmanin completed a two-day visit across the Atlantic to boost police and judicial cooperation between France and the United States, for the fight against terrorism and serious crime. He notably met with the Deputy Minister of Justice, Lisa Monaco, and the Minister of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayorkas.
In New York, he met with the megacity’s chief of police, Keechant Sewell, to talk about policing and securing major international events. The minister mentioned in particular the Paris Olympics next year (July 26 to August 11, 2024), the Rugby World Cup this fall (September 8 to October 28, 2023) or the visit of Pope Francis to Marseille on September 23.
In this context, Gérald Darmanin affirmed that “the risk resumes” in terms of “Islamic terrorism” which would again target France and its European neighbours. The Minister thus deplored the “departure of Americans from Afghanistan” and that of France “the sahelo-saharan band”, “the reconstitution of Daesh cells [groupe Etat islamique] in the Levant, which mean that these exogenous threats, in the perspective of the major events that France is going to organize, are moments of significant risk of terrorist attacks”.
2023-05-20 11:25:29
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