On the night of Saturday to Sunday, April 15, an inmate of Seysses prison, Jawad (27 years), died in his cell. The official thesis (that of the prison administration) speaks of “suicide by hanging”. But the relatives of the deceased believe rather that it was due to a violent beating by the screws. On Sunday, more than 90 prisoners respond to this death by refusing to go back to the cells. The protest lasts several hours and the PA decides to appeal to the ERIS to restore order.
The same evening, anger is expressed in the streets of la Reynerie district where many vehicles are burnt (more than a dozen), cops are stoned. The Mirail police station in Bellefontaine is also attacked with Molotov cocktails by young people during the evening. The night of disorder ends without any arrests.
On the night of Monday to Tuesday, April 17, the riots intensify and spread far beyond the Reynerie district: from Bellefontaine and Bagatelle, right to the district of Patte d’Oie towards Casselardit, and even to the Minimes, and also Blagnac and Colomiers. “Mobile groups of 30 to 40 people” ambush the police force deployed in large numbers for this second night of riots consecutively (besides the Toulouse squadrons, massive deployments of CRS squadrons throughout the neighbourhood, plus a helicopter from the National Gendarmerie). The cops are attacked with stones, garbage and vehicles are burned … Started around 20:40 in La Reyne rie, riots continue until 4am, all the neighbourhoods combined.
Since the evening of Monday, April 16, there have been demonstrations in the city centre with banners: Monday evening, slogans were shouted from Esquirol to Jean Jaurès via the capitol: “destroy prisons”, “cops murderers “, “Solidarity with la Reynerie” …
[Translated by Act for freedom now ! ]
