French police arrested two far-left Antifa extremists who were armed with firearms and plotting an attack on police officers.
The two individuals were arrested simultaneously in the commune of Corbas and the municipality of Bourg-en-Bresse, located north-east of the city of Lyon.
The elite French police tactical unit Research, Assistance, Intervention, Deterrence (RAID) undertook the operations that led to the arrests after investigators had learnt the pair had acquired firearms to carry out an attack, LyonMag reported on Thursday. The leftists are said to have prior criminal records and to be aged around 50.
The leftist arrested in Corbas was detained alongside another man whose apartment he was living in. The latter individual was released after proving that the many weapons found in his home were purchased legally.
The alleged plot against the police comes after members of the “ACAB Collective” made death threats against police officers in December, sending letters to the personal addresses of officers.
“ACAB” — or “All Coppers Are Bastards” — has become a familiar slogan used by far-left Antifa across France, Germany, the United States, and other countries.
In November of last year, a female Antifa extremist using the name “Marie ACAB-Land” was arrested in Paris at the first anniversary of the Gilets Jaunes (Yellow Vest) movement after it was claimed she had been spying on police officers. The 21-year-old had previously been arrested in Toulouse for documenting and photographing officers at another protest.
Attack plots against police in France by leftists are not new. An attack was foiled last year when five Antifa were arrested in August. They were allegedly plotting an attack on a hotel in Biarritz during the G7 conference, with some sources alleging they wanted to burn the hotel down with the officers inside.