The government announced Friday, June 10 urgently deploy a squadron of mobile gendarmes on the island of Mayotte, in the grip of violence, in order to “restore republican order» at the request of the prefect.
Read alsoGovernment condemns clashes in Mayotte
Rival gangs have been clashing since Monday in Majicavo and Koungou, in the northeast of the department, following the stabbing murder of a young man the day before. The police intervened toliberate many axes regularly hampered by burning barricades», operations during which «four departmental gendarmes as well as three mobile gendarmes were injured by throwing projectiles and blows“Said the Ministries of the Interior and Overseas in a joint press release.
Mayotte, an archipelago in the Indian Ocean, is regularly shaken by outbreaks of violence between rival gangs or against the police when they intervene to put an end to it. In February, exasperated residents had blocked access to their neighborhood for several days and tried to block traffic routes. In 2021, the Mamoudzou public prosecutor’s office recorded a 25% increase in referrals for criminal acts in Mayotte and 21% for misdemeanors.
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