Burning bins and cars, people with weapons and special forces cadres from the French Dijon prompt thoughts about the latest unrest amid protests against racism that engulfed not only the US but European countries. This time, however, racism has nothing to do with it: new wave of violence provoked natives of Chechnya. What made Chechen refugees to organize a pogrom in the capital of Burgundy and why the French authorities so sluggish to react — in the material “Tape.ru”.
What is now called Dijon hell began quite banal: June 10, unknown assailants severely beat 16-year-old. The victim was a local Chechen refugee and, apparently, became a victim of drug traffickers from the Dijon area of Gresy Arabs, immigrants from the Maghreb (North Africa). Media write that the young man stood up for his friends Balkan (Croats, or Albanians), and in the end, he was allegedly kept alive only to have him tell her that “it will be with anyone”. Teenager in critical condition in hospital, and in fact the incident initiated a case under article about attempt at murder.
Information about the incident quickly spread in the Chechen Diaspora, and on the night of 13 June, the situation in Dijon escalated. Dozens of people from Chechnya who want to avenge, came to the city from neighboring regions. At itself they had baseball bats, metal bars, knives and hammers.
“There were about a hundred of our from all over France and from Belgium and Germany”, — told the press one of the Chechens.
According to him, the community “is not going to sack the town or to kill people”, with the purpose of local drug dealers.
That night the mob smashed the popular local hookah bar Le Black Pearl (the Black pearl), the owner who was accused of organizing the attack on the teenager. There have also been some fights. Police just sprayed tear gas to disperse the crowd, but no one was arrested.
The next night the conflicting parties set up a meeting to resolve the situation. However, the agreement did not seem possible: someone started shooting. It was reported that the night was shot and wounded the Manager of a local pizzeria. A new appointment was made on the early morning of June 15, however, Africans had not appeared. Reporters noted that, against this backdrop, the Chechens behaved very discreetly, though, and walked around the streets with metal bars. And in the morning they began to patrol the streets of Dijon on the machines “for the sake of security”.
But security was not achieved, and in the afternoon on 15 June in Dijon began to have serious unrest. Men fired automatic weapons in the air, shot down surveillance cameras, burned garbage cans and cars. However, Yesthe best authorities, participated in the riots are not already visitors, and local residents.
Living in France historian Mairbek of Vachagaev in an interview with “Radio Liberty” also said that the shooting and arson began only after the Chechens organized left Dijon. He claimed that the streets abruptly came the Arabs with guns, which started firing into the air, to paint the walls with inscriptions about the murder of Chechens and chanting similar slogans.
However, such developments in the city were ready. If weekend police thought it best not to intervene, then by Monday in Dijon already sent special forces, who dispersed the crowd. In addition, several people were arrested. In total during the riots affected more than 10 people, including journalists, whose car was stoned.
Only in the evening on 17 June, the information appeared that the warring parties agreed to stop fighting. Their meeting took place in the mosque in the municipality of Quetigny near Dijon. It was attended by about 15 people, including the father of the injured boy. The representative of the Chechen Diaspora said that the Maghrebi community admitted his guilt and apologized.
the “Better to be afraid than to find a dead body.”
The French authorities considered the incident unacceptable and unusual phenomenon, but refused to name the gang war. According to the Prosecutor of Dijon Eric Mate, it was a “Chechen punitive expedition” and “revenge directed at the members of the Maghrebi community of Dijon”. Incident he called a “communal and racist rejection”.
Policy in General rather rests on the fact that the incident was a settling of accounts between the communities and not linked to the drug trade — supposedly no group of drug dealers in the city. At the same time, a police source in France said that there was a conflict still, between rival gangs.
A source in the French Chechen Diaspora reported that on the opposite side of the clashes was attended by Algerian migrants and the natives of France of Arab descent, with whom relations have long been strained. He added that in recent weeks there have been several incidents which affected the Chechens, and the community in response partially blocked the work of drug traffickers while the police remained inactive.
As stated by the head of the press service of the Assembly of the Chechens of Europe and former chair of the Association of Caucasians in Strasbourg Shamil Albakov, the events in Dijon have nothing to do with the war of gangs and should not become the rule.
“we feel abandoned by the police during the quarantine. (…) There were problems: we had to constantly live under the control of drug traffickers [who established their own rules]. The Chechens were able to repel Russia, and we are not going to obey some kind of scum”, ��� he said.
The same was said and one appeared on the streets of Dijon Chechens in conversation with the staff of radio France 3.
“If necessary, we will come back at least every day. We are sorry that we’ve inconvenienced, frightened people. But it is better to be afraid than if tomorrow you will find at the entrance of the corpse,” he said.
the Chechen threat and mountain habits
Whether in the current conflict talking about the redistribution of spheres of influence or the fight against drug trafficking, the French intelligence services make it clear: the Chechen threat in the country in any case exist. It says in trapped in the media of confidential document information Services, intelligence and strategic analysis of organized crime (SIRASCO) the Central Directorate of judicial police in France.
According to the document, “the Chechen criminal network” behind many crimes in France. The Ministry said that the country has in recent years intensified the criminal activities of the Chechen community: in particular, frequent clashes between its representatives and natives of the countries of North Africa.
In turn, the French police, which has for a long time watching intercommunal tensions, indicates that the Chechen community demonstrates a “large mobilization capacity”, as is illustrated by the conflict in Dijon.
A researcher from the French Institute of geopolitics Elena Mak-Glandier indicates that the transition to violence and mass action on the part of Chechens linked with their traditions and habits. In particular, strong clan ties lead to the fact that one victim’s answer abuser asking collectively. In addition, ethnic Chechens suffer from the stereotypes of “brave fighters”. Playing the role of the local stereotype that Chechens are often considered “terrorists” people from middle Eastern and North African communities in Europe. In the end, the habit of being important and leads to a certain rivalry, said the researcher.
In recent months, news about incidents involving Chechens appeared more than once: the Caucasian “self” were seen not only in Dijon. So, at the end of April in nice skirmish, which wounded two of the Chechens. A little later, a mass fight with participation of natives of Chechnya happened near the city of Troyes: about 50 men with bats and iron bars attacked migrants from Africa who were accused of assaulting a Caucasian child. And in may in Rouen dozens of people wanted to deal with the alleged kidnappers of a young man from their community.
of Where are you from, sir?
Dijon events of recent days forced the French to once again draw attention to the Chechen Diaspora. “The French who are the Chechens?” so question is am��s newspaper in the country, reminding readers of a fairly well-known facts.
Community of Chechens in France — one of the largest in Europe. The exact number is difficult to call: the migration service often do not report the ethnicity of the asylum-seeker, registering only citizenship. It is known, however, that the natives of Chechnya, account for the vast majority of refugees from Russia.
In France of Chechens (as refugees and granted a residence permit or citizenship), according to various estimates, there are from 15 to 60 thousand people, and in Europe — about 150 thousand. Basically, the Chechens acquired also in Belgium, Poland and Germany, but communities there are in the Netherlands, Sweden, Austria, Denmark and other countries.
Speaking about the mores of this community, the Europeans, as usual, very politically correct. According to a College Professor in Alsace, his disciples Chechen origin — “difficult children” who “are not afraid of anything and are often in excellent shape”.
Often mention that the newcomers survived the war and the brutal power of the modern Chechen administration. I remember much less about the ethnic cleansing of the Russian population of the Republic that preceded the war. And also that a significant proportion of migrants who have left Russia since the beginning of the second military campaign in Chechnya, are the supporters of Dzhokhar Dudayev, that is a very radical ethno-nationalists, often with sympathy for radical Islamic movements.
The reputation of a strong-willed, loyal and violent men makes the Chechens favorite targets of recruiters from terrorist groups, says Anna Giudicelli, head of the analytical center of Terrorisc, assessing the terrorist threat. According to sources, the newspaper Le Point, despite the small size of the Chechen community, came from him was about 10 per cent of all arrivals from France to Syria and Iraq the supporters of the “Islamic state” (ISIS, a terrorist organization banned in Russia). No wonder some 300 Chechens living in the country, listed in the register for the prevention of radicalization of a terrorist nature (FSPRT).
In this case, attempts to prevent the attacks sometimes fail: in may 2018, a man named Hamzat Asimov with a knife attacked passers-by in Paris. ISIS immediately took responsibility for the attack, and the Chechen community disown the terrorist. But the structural problem is this will not go away, and the French authorities in a sense, trapped. As told the publication Europe1 police officer from a counter-terrorist units, there are instances when the Chechens with refugee status, directly sponsoring terrorists in Syria, but to deport them back to the Russian government the French interior Ministry does not want for reasons of humanity.
Dijon incident, after all the previous messages about the Chechen crime in Europe, shows Chechen Diaspora without even a hint of terrorist sentiment is not too appreciate the standards of the society in which he lives. Traditional clan solidarity — the willingness to stand up for their own, full of secrecy from outsiders — gives the Chechens embarked on the path of crime, an advantage over other ethnic gangs. A strict code of ethics and a collective image of a proud Highlander — the opportunity to publicly take a moral stand, putting it above the law and order established by the state.
Extremism in this situation — a particular manifestation of the structural problems: on cohesive ethnic community is ready to accept the benefits of the countries hosting them as refugees and immigrants. But humanistic values, which push the Western States to such a charity, is not necessary newcomers: their strong belief systems, established over centuries, remain the same and are reproduced in new generations.
Reports from Dijon to repeatedly mention that both sides in Dijon conflict appeared “the youth” — young people, many of whom grew up or were even born in Europe, share values of their fathers and grandfathers. And these units often directly contradict the very foundations of European civilization. And it is unclear how the EU are going to deal with this problem and you see it at all.
