https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from France in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed Protesting prison guards blocked jails across France on Wednesday morning after two officers were left seriously wounded in an attack by a "radicalised" inmate. It's not the first time staff have been targeted by jihadist inmates. https://www.thelocal.fr/20190306/prisons-blocked-across-france-after-guards-attacked-by-radicalised-inmate Wed, 06 Mar 2019 10:20:31 +0100 prisons-blocked-across-france-after-guards-attacked-by-radicalised-inmate France's Minister for Justice has unveiled a plan to stop overcrowding in the country's prisons that will scrap short sentences and create 7,000 extra places for more serious offenders. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180912/france-to-stop-sending-petty-criminals-to-prison Wed, 12 Sep 2018 14:56:19 +0200 france-to-stop-sending-petty-criminals-to-prison French President Emmanuel Macron unveiled Tuesday a series of overhauls to the justice system aimed at finding alternatives to jail, a bid to tackle chronic overcrowding at the country's prisons. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180307/macron-unveils-justice-revamp-to-find-alternatives-to-jail Wed, 07 Mar 2018 10:10:33 +0100 macron-unveils-justice-revamp-to-find-alternatives-to-jail The biggest union representing protesting French prison guards said Friday it had reached an agreement in principle with the government to end nearly two weeks of action to highlight security risks and poor pay. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180127/breakthrough-in-french-prison-standoff Sat, 27 Jan 2018 09:09:48 +0100 breakthrough-in-french-prison-standoff French prison guards pushed ahead with work stoppages and pickets Friday after two unions turned down the government's latest offer to end a nearly two-week crisis after a series of attacks by inmates. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180126/french-prison-guards-reject-governments-offer-to-end-protest Fri, 26 Jan 2018 12:57:12 +0100 french-prison-guards-reject-governments-offer-to-end-protest The nationwide strike by prison guards in France was ramped up on Monday after new attacks by inmates against wardens. Blockades were in place at 120 prisons with the government desperate to find a solution. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180122/guards-blockade-120-jails-as-french-prisons-crisis-continues Mon, 22 Jan 2018 09:56:24 +0100 guards-blockade-120-jails-as-french-prisons-crisis-continues Two French prison guards were attacked by knife-wielding prisoners on Friday, one of whom is believed to have been a radicalized Islamist. The latest attack comes as guards clashed with riot police during a strike over security concerns. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180119/french-prison-guards-hurt-in-new-attack-as-striking-wardens-clash-with-riot-police Fri, 19 Jan 2018 13:25:25 +0100 french-prison-guards-hurt-in-new-attack-as-striking-wardens-clash-with-riot-police Assaults by inmates linked to Islamic extremism prompted a second day of strikes by prison guards across France on Tuesday, casting a spotlight on the challenges of handling radicalised prisoners. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180116/we-risk-our-lives-for-15k-a-month-french-prison-guards-on-edge-after Tue, 16 Jan 2018 16:26:29 +0100 we-risk-our-lives-for-15k-a-month-french-prison-guards-on-edge-after Prison guards in France suffered two new attacks by radicalized Islamist convicts at separate jails on Tuesday just days after a blade attack by an Al Qaeda inmate left three officers injured. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180116/seven-french-prison-guards-attacked-by-radicalized-inmate Tue, 16 Jan 2018 13:50:16 +0100 seven-french-prison-guards-attacked-by-radicalized-inmate French prison officers blocked access to several jails around the country on Monday to demand tighter security after three officers were injured in a blade attack by a German terror convict last week. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180115/french-prison-guards-block-jails-after-blade-attack-by-qaeda-convict Mon, 15 Jan 2018 12:44:16 +0100 french-prison-guards-block-jails-after-blade-attack-by-qaeda-convict A French prisoner is suing his jail after it was infested with rats and judging by the video he took he has a stonewall case. https://www.thelocal.fr/20161021/yikes-jail-france-this-is-what-a-rat-infested-french-prison-looks-like Fri, 21 Oct 2016 16:27:27 +0200 yikes-jail-france-this-is-what-a-rat-infested-french-prison-looks-like France's Prime Minister Manuel Valls announced a plan to build 33 new prisons around the country by 2025 to deal with the chronic overcrowding in France's jails. https://www.thelocal.fr/20161006/france-to-build-33-new-prisons-across-the-country Thu, 06 Oct 2016 14:22:04 +0200 france-to-build-33-new-prisons-across-the-country Campaigners filed a complaint against the French state Monday, denouncing overcrowding and filthy conditions in a prison near Paris infested with rats, cockroaches and bedbugs. https://www.thelocal.fr/20161004/france-taken-to-court-for-rat-and-roach-infested-prison Tue, 04 Oct 2016 10:28:30 +0200 france-taken-to-court-for-rat-and-roach-infested-prison France must create 10,000 more prison places, says the PM Manuel Valls, who also said that some 15,000 potential terror suspects are now being closely watched. https://www.thelocal.fr/20160912/france-needs-10000-new-prison-places-for-15000-extremists Mon, 12 Sep 2016 14:46:05 +0200 france-needs-10000-new-prison-places-for-15000-extremists France’s Prime Minister has vowed to solve the problem of the country’s record-breaking number of prisoners, but some say more jails are not the answer. https://www.thelocal.fr/20160808/france-to-buld-more-cells-as-prisons-bulge-at-the-seems Mon, 08 Aug 2016 17:48:18 +0200 france-to-buld-more-cells-as-prisons-bulge-at-the-seems How should France deal with its scores of radicalized prisoners? A new report has criticized the scheme of housing them together separate from other prisoners. https://www.thelocal.fr/20160706/france-criticised-for-grouping-radicalized-inmates-together Wed, 06 Jul 2016 13:43:57 +0200 france-criticised-for-grouping-radicalized-inmates-together UPDATED: France’s justice minister said on Tuesday the country's culture demanded punishment, not 'de-radicalization', for returning jihadists, and denied French courts had trampled on freedom of speech in the aftermath of the Paris terror attacks. https://www.thelocal.fr/20150127/france-terrorism-jihadists-paris-attacks-christiane-taubira-justice Tue, 27 Jan 2015 15:44:00 +0100 france-terrorism-jihadists-paris-attacks-christiane-taubira-justice A probe has been launched in France after inmates at a prison posted selfies on a Facebook page showing them waving bundles of cash around, displaying drugs and playing with mobile phones. https://www.thelocal.fr/20150106/french-inmates-facebook-page-prompts-uproar Tue, 06 Jan 2015 15:00:00 +0100 french-inmates-facebook-page-prompts-uproar A controversial ruling that ordered a French prison to serve up halal meals to inmates was overturned by a court in Lyon this week in the latest issue to pit the country's secular tradition against Islamic practice. https://www.thelocal.fr/20140723/french-prison-will-not-be-forced-to-serve-halal-meat Wed, 23 Jul 2014 11:05:00 +0200 french-prison-will-not-be-forced-to-serve-halal-meat A French mother who held down her four-year-old son while his stepfather raped him in a prison visiting room was jailed for 20 years this week. Her partner, described as a "sadist in the purest form" was handed the same sentence. Prison authorities could now face prosecution. https://www.thelocal.fr/20130926/french-mum-jailed-for-20-years-over-sons-prison-rape Thu, 26 Sep 2013 10:14:00 +0200 french-mum-jailed-for-20-years-over-sons-prison-rape