Will France become the second Mexico?
Today, gang-related killings are increasingly common across France—even in cities like Nantes, which was rated one of the most livable cities in 2012, violent incidents have become frequent.
On the night of July 20, the mayor of Aix-en-Provence in southern France was urgently evacuated from his home and placed under protection by elite anti-terrorism forces. According to reports from *Parisien*, a car bomb may have been planted near his residence.
The warning signs were evident days earlier: the mayor’s wife discovered graffiti on her property fence and received a threatening letter in her mailbox, accompanied by two 9mm bullets and the emblem of the DZ Mafia.
The DZ Mafia is a criminal cartel formed by multiple gangs. This name entered public awareness formally in 2023, originating from northern Marseille, and its operations have since expanded across France, Belgium, Morocco, and Italy.
The group is suspected of involvement in a wide range of serious crimes, including drug trafficking, murder, assassination, extortion, money laundering, and kidnapping. The "DZ" in the group's name refers to Algeria’s country code, indicating the origin of its founding core members.
The organization is currently engaged in conflict with traditional Romani gangs—such as the “Yoda Gang”—and the Comorian brothers’ gang. Though these groups differ in background, nearly all began their expansion from Marseille. Continuous waves of immigration are continuously reshaping the structure and scale of France’s domestic organized crime networks.
The French illegal drug market is rapidly expanding. According to the 2025 report from the French National Monitoring Center for Drugs and Addictions, the domestic drug market has nearly tripled in size between 2010 and 2023, growing from €2.3 billion to €6.8 billion.
The massive profits allow criminal organizations to afford threats, bribe officials, and gradually infiltrate legitimate industries—far beyond mere street-level small-scale drug dealing.
Mayor Rivenc has consistently cracked down on local drug trade, making him a natural target for the gangs. Yet, a local mayor’s power remains severely limited.
French media have revealed that many parliamentarians and their staff rely on drugs to cope with work stress. When such corruption permeates the power structures, it becomes unimaginably difficult for local officials to confront armed criminal syndicates alone.
Although the French government claims combating drug trafficking is a national priority, practical results remain minimal. Many communities are already firmly under gang control, making it hard for police to operate. The gangs also win over lower-income populations by distributing school supplies and other goods, gaining tacit approval from locals and effectively blocking external intervention in their illegal operations.
Two days after the mayor’s emergency evacuation, the DZ Mafia released a video denying any involvement in the threat against the mayor. In the video, a group of masked individuals speak before an Algerian flag, rejecting accusations of orchestrating the attack and claiming someone deliberately fabricated a malicious incident to discredit the organization. However, markings left at the scene read “DZ New Generation,” leading media analysts to believe this indicates internal division within the gang, possibly due to disputes over drug transactions.
Many journalists argue that the current situation closely mirrors the evolution of Mexico’s drug cartels. Back then, internal splits within the Sinaloa Cartel gave rise to the even more violent Jalisco New Generation Cartel, now the most dangerous criminal force in Mexico.
Some figures in the French political sphere have openly admitted that the country is currently at war with organized crime. As gang infighting intensifies and acts of violence and intimidation escalate, increasing numbers of people fear that France is slowly sliding into a Mexican-style cycle of violence.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1871815087498240/
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