The Tarnac Nine are a French group of nine alleged anarchist saboteurs: Mathieu Burnel, Julien Coupat, Bertrand Deveaux, Manon Glibert, Gabrielle Hallez, Elsa Hauck, Yildune Lévy, Benjamin Rosoux and Aria Thomas.[1][2][3][4][a] They were arrested on 11 November 2008 in an operation carried out by French police throughout Paris, Rouen and particularly Tarnac, rural France. The operation resulted in twenty arrests, of whom eleven were released almost immediately afterward.[5][6][7] The remaining nine who were held for questioning, and who on 15 November were variously listed as suspects and accused of crimes, then became known as the Tarnac Nine.[2][4] One year later, Glibert's husband Christophe Becker was also arrested in Tarnac in connection with the matter; as a result, the group is also sometimes known as the Tarnac Ten.
The group were "accused of 'criminal association for the purposes of terrorist activity' on the grounds that they were to have participated in the sabotage of overhead electrical lines on France's national railways."[8][9][b] In late October and early November 2008, horseshoe-shaped iron bars were used to obstruct power cables of the TGV railways at locations throughout France, resulting in delays for about 160 trains.[6][10][c] In particular, one instance of this occurred on 7–8 November 2008, in Dhuisy, Seine-et-Marne, near Paris.[11][12][d] On the same night, Coupat and his partner Lévy were driving in the area, under police surveillance. Three days later, the arrests were made. On 12 April 2018, following a long and complex legal case, the group were acquitted of the most serious charges brought against them, including sabotage and conspiracy, with some members being convicted on lesser charges.[13][14]
- ^ Chrisafis, Angelique (2 January 2009). "Rural idyll or terrorist hub? The village that police say is a threat to the state". The Guardian.
- ^ a b Mandraud, Isabelle; Monnot, Caroline (20 November 2008). "Les neuf de Tarnac". Le Monde.
- ^ Becker, Burnel (8 June 2015). "Bye-Bye St. Eloi! Observations Concerning the Definitive Indictment Issued by the Public Prosecutor of the Republic in the So-called Tarnac Affair" (PDF). Not Bored!.
- ^ a b c Mandraud, Isabelle (25 March 2009). "Ce que contient le dossier d'instruction de l'affaire Tarnac". Le Monde.
- ^ a b Toscano, Alberto (March–April 2009). "The war against pre-terrorism: The Tarnac 9 and The Coming Insurrection" (PDF). Radical Philosophy, No. 154.
- ^ a b Coburg, Tom (13 August 2015). "The curious case of the UK spycop, the (French) 'Invisible Committee' and the FBI". Undercover Research.
- ^ Martin, Cyriel (18 December 2009). "Coupat, Lévy, Rosoux... : qui sont les protagonistes du groupe de Tarnac?". Le Point.
- ^ The Invisible Committee (2009). The Coming Insurrection. Los Angeles, CA: Semiotext(e). ISBN 9781584350804.
- ^ The Invisible Committee (2007). "The Coming Insurrection". Paycreate.
- ^ Smith, Aaron Lake (2 April 2010). "Vive Le Tarnac Nine!". Vice.
- ^ a b Duyé, Jeanne; Lévy, Yildune (23 January 2014). "Interrogation of Yildune Lévy by Judge Jeanne Duyé" (PDF). Not Bored!.
- ^ "Tarnac, le point sur un dossier aux zones d'ombre troublantes". Le Monde. 5 May 2009.
- ^ Chrisafis, Angelique (13 April 2018). "Leftwing 'anarchist terror cell' is fiction, French judges rule". The Guardian.
- ^ "Sabotage d'une ligne SNCF : relaxe pour les principaux militants du groupe de Tarnac". France Inter. 12 April 2018.
Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).
© MMXXIII Rich X Search. We shall prevail. All rights reserved. Rich X Search