Paris, June 19 (IANS/DPA) France's army and police are preparing for possible unrest during the upcoming parliamentary elections, particularly in the event of a victory for the right-wing nationalist National Rally.
The scenario of unrest on the streets and in the suburbs in the event of a victory for Marine Le Pen's party was discussed at a briefing last week in the Paris Ministry of Defence, the JDD newspaper reported on Tuesday, citing a high-ranking army official.
"We expect it to be complicated. Given the current situation, the police could be put under enormous strain and the army could also be put under greater strain," the official was quoted as saying.
France's national police force is expecting a "conflagration" in the country if the RN wins, Eric Henry, representative of the police union, the Alliance Police Nationale, told the JDD.
The day of the second round of elections, July 7, is considered to be a "high-risk" date.
The police have been instructed to deploy as many personnel as possible that evening and in the days that follow.
The police are already equipping themselves logistically.
The situation is all the more delicate as the Olympic Games begin just a few days later, said Henry.
According to information from the JDD, the threat assessment is shared by the domestic intelligence service.
Christophe Miette, national secretary of the SCSI-CFDT police union, recently also described the risk of unrest in remarks carried by French broadcaster RFI.
Miette spoke of the danger of "riots and violence around these election dates, the risk of a snowball effect like the one we saw at the end of the Yellow Vest movement".
The social protests that flared up in 2018 kept tensions in France high for over a year.
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