these “red lines” set by Gérald Darmanin for demonstrators who want to lay “siege” on Paris

After several days of mobilization, several processions arrive at midday around Paris and large cities. The Minister of the Interior calls for “moderation”, but nevertheless shows his muscles.

Despite the very important system, there is no question of making contact: the police are once again called to “moderation” with farmers, despite the increasingly heavy pressure on the government. Thus, “15,000 police officers and gendarmes are mobilized“, declared Sunday January 28 Gérald Darmanin at the end of an interministerial crisis unit in the presence of Marc Fesneau. In order to avoid the “siege” of Paris and the Rungis market, the Minister of the Interior specifies that ‘there will be “mobile force units“, but also “armored vehicles of the national gendarmerie and helicopters of the national gendarmerie to watch and anticipate the movements of the tractors“.

These law enforcement agencies are tasked with preventing tractors from entering cities. “notably the big cities, obviously Paris and the big regional capitals“The police and gendarmes must also allow the Rungis market to “continue to workr”, as well as “the major Parisian airports Roissy and Orly but also the provincial airports“.

No intervention on blocking points

Security and control missions therefore, but at provided that certain red lines are not crossed, specifies Beauvau: starting with the entry of tractors in big cities, and Paris in particular. There is no question, either, of blocking major airports, nor certain nerve centers, such as the Rungis market, south of Paris. In Ile-de-France, helicopters also fly over the area to anticipate the movements of tractors and prevent them from getting too close to Paris. However, the demonstrators assure us: they do not want to enter the capital, but to block, from Monday 2 p.m., all highways around the capital via eight blocking points in total. But there is no question of moving further, says Gérald Darmanin, who also rejects any degradation of public buildings.

Jso far, the Minister of the Interior had spoken of “legitimate bloodshed“, despite several buildings being targeted, pallet fires in front of the Gironde prefecture, a supermarket which collapsed under the weight of slurry in Agen or even an administrative building blown up by an explosion in Carcassonne… From now on, there will be arrests for those who attack public buildings, such as prefectures, sub-prefectures or tax centers, but also trucks transporting foreign goods, warns Gérald Darmanin.

Beyond these “red lines”, the police will remain in the background: there will be no intervention at the blocking points, promises the Minister of the Interior, who justified this defensive strategy by arguing that , jso far, excesses have been very rare and farmers have never attacked the police. The rest will depend on the continuation of the movement, it is specified: the blockages could last until Thursday, the day of the European Council. The Minister of the Interior confides: we must expect “a difficult week“.