Two weeks after the mobilization against the mega-basin, the events in Sainte-Soline (Deux-Sèvres) continue to raise questions. In a report posted online on Wednesday April 12, the General Inspectorate of the National Gendarmerie (IGGN) returns in particular to the two LBD shots carried out by gendarmes mounted on quads. The body concludes that these shots are in accordance with “self-defense” and that the soldiers committed “no fault”.
These two shots, carried out by gendarmes from a motorized intervention squad (PM2I), and whose images broadcast on social networks had sparked controversy, “were carried out during the most critical phase of the operation. maintenance of order”, writes the IGGN in its report, consulted by Franceinfo and of which Agence France-Presse (AFP) has taken note. This report was sent to the Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, by the Director General of the National Gendarmerie, Christian Rodriguez, on April 4.
Even if the shooting of LBD in motion is “proscribed”, as recalled by the General Directorate of the National Gendarmerie (DGGN) in a letter accompanying the report, the IGGN notes that “no fault can be noted” at the against the two soldiers since the two shots were carried out “in the justified context of self-defense of oneself and others”, which “supersedes” the ban on shooting on the move. These shots, one carried out while stationary and the other while driving, took place in a “situation of proven danger” for the gendarmes, while a “group of ‘black blocks’ completed the encirclement” of the latter, continues the IGGN.
A man still between life and death
The shots are fired in “situation of self-defense”, “in the face of dangerous individuals, determined and reiterating violence”, adds the inspection, which relied in particular on the recordings of the soldiers’ pedestrian cameras. The gendarmes “never tried to conceal” the shootings and “immediately reported it to their hierarchy”, observes the IGGN. “In view of these elements, it seems to me that our soldiers acted with professionalism, proportionality and discernment”, adds Christian Rodriguez in his letter.
The IGGN’s findings come days after a report by the “Complément d’Enquête” program broadcast on Thursday, which contradicts the official version of the facts communicated by the national gendarmerie. According to the report, the first tear gas was fired at 12:17 p.m., while the report from the national gendarmerie mentions the first clashes at 1:05 p.m.
The March 25 demonstration in Sainte-Soline against mega-basins brought together 6,000 to 8,000 people according to the authorities, 30,000 according to the organizers. The latter reported 200 injuries, including 40 serious, on the side of the demonstrators, a man still between life and death.