The Barbarians At The Gate

The Sunday Times has an absolutely chilling look at a gang of self-described “barbarians” in the banlieues of Paris – the same gang responsible for the brutal murder of Ilan Halimi, a young French Jew who was found tortured to death on the outskirts of the French capital:

Other examples of savagery in these lawless enclaves were exposed on Friday at the trial of Jamal Derrar. He was accused of burning 17-year-old Sohane Benziane to death in 2002 in Vitry-Sur-Seine, where last year’s orgy of suburban rioting began, after she defied his order to stay away from his “territory”.

“You’re frightened, huh?” he jeered, according to testimony, after pouring petrol over her head and taking out his cigarette lighter. He lit the lighter several times in front of her face to torment her to tears until finally setting her alight.

“It is barbarism,” Kahina, the victim’s sister, said last week. “I want barbarism rejected. It is becoming so banal. We are not in a war. I refuse to live in a country that cannot defend its citizens.”

The situation in France is becoming increasingly grim – civil society in the country is slowly but surely breaking down. Areas like the Sarcelles and other flashpoints around the capital have become virtual “no-go” areas for French police, and the recent student riots have demonstrated that French youth have become violently alienated from their own society. Le manif and la grève (demonstrations and strikes) have become commonplace as powerful unions have become virtual branches of the government. The recent rounds of violence in France have highlighted the impotence of the government in keeping law and order. Barbarism has become shockingly common as lawlessness spreads from the confines of the banlieues to the heart of the capital itself.

France finds itself mired in an existential crisis – a nation that rightly prides itself on centuries of history is facing barbarism in its own capital the likes of which have not been seen in some time. The confluence of multiculturalism, immigration, anti-Semitism, moral nihilism, and racism are coming together to form a perfect cultural storm as the rotten core of the welfare state is exposed. It is unsurprising with all the anarchy that many are questioning whether the French government can really defend its citizenry – which may force more and more people who are tired of the brutality into the arms of some like Jean-Marie Le Pen.