A Telegram group called French Prisoner Rights (DDPF) is under investigation by police after a series of attacks on jails across France. The group, which has over 1,000 members, was created the day before the first wave of attacks in April.
The group’s manifesto rejects government efforts to clamp down on a growing drug trade and criticizes Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin’s prison crackdown. They claim to be defending human rights inside prisons, but some police sources suspect a previously unknown hard-left group behind the slogan.
Darmanin plans to build 3,000 new prison places and has been a key architect of the government’s counter-narcotics drive. The Telegram group shares humorous videos filmed by inmates, but also contains more menacing messages.
The French government has yet to say who is behind the attacks, with Darmanin stating he believes they are a reaction to his efforts to combat the growing drug trade. However, police say prisoners run their drug businesses via smuggled cellphones and that the group’s main target appears to be Darmanin himself.
The investigation into the Telegram group has raised questions about the potential for radicalization among prisoners and the impact of government policies on prison conditions.
Source: https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/inside-telegram-group-with-possible-links-mysterious-french-prison-attacks-2025-04-16