Not Surrendering Yet

The unreported civil war.

Radical Muslims in France's housing estates are waging an undeclared "intifada," or uprising, against the police, with violent clashes injuring about 14 officers each day.

As the Interior Ministry announced that nearly 2,500 officers had been wounded this year, a police union declared that its members were "in a state of civil war" with Muslims in the most depressed "banlieue" estates. Banlieue, which means outskirts, is the commonly used euphemism for the low-income housing projects heavily populated by unemployed youths of North African origin.

The police union said it had asked the government to provide police with armored cars to protect officers in the estates, which it said were becoming no-go zones.

The number of attacks has risen by a third in two years. Police representatives told the newspaper Le Figaro that the "taboo" of attacking officers on patrol has been broken.

Instead, officers -- especially those patrolling in pairs or small groups -- are facing attacks when they try to arrest locals.

Islam Posted by AlexC at October 12, 2006 2:06 PM