On Tuesday, French army chief General Francois Lecountre urged the soldiers who signed a letter warning the French government of a “civil war” caused by Islamic radicalism, to quit the institution. He said, “The most reasonable step is certainly to leave the institution in order to freely express their ideas and convictions”. He argued that the letter was in violation of the discretion that the soldiers owed to the institution and “dragged the army” into political debates. He further added that while soldiers do enjoy the freedom of thought, they ought to “unambiguously distinguish between civic and military duties.”
This statement comes in response to an open letter penned by anonymous French soldiers, which was published on the far-right website Valeurs Actuelles on Sunday. In the document, the soldiers identified themselves as young members of the military who served in several missions including those in Afghanistan and the Central African Republic (CAR). The text warned French authorities against giving “concessions” to Islamism and religious extremism and accused the government of “cowardice, deceit, perversion”. It spoke of the sacrifice made by retired members of the armed forces, saying, “They gave their skin to destroy the Islamism to which you are giving concessions on our soil”. The letter also cautioned that cracking down on Islamic extremism was about “the survival” of France.
Unsurprisingly, the letter faced opposition from political leaders. French President Emmanuel Macron’s spokesperson accused the letter of being a ploy to advance the political ambitions of far-right politician Marin Le Pen ahead of the upcoming election. Additionally, French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said that it was a “crude manoeuvre.” Moreover, Florence Parly, the armed forces minister, reminded the soldiers that their duty was “to defend France” and not to “campaign” for any political party.
However, this is not the first time that such a document has been published by the outlet. A similar letter was put out on April 21, wherein 20 retired members of the armed force warned French President Emmanuel Macron of a “civil war” unless he cracked down on religious extremists. The message, which was also signed by several serving members of the force, accused the government of having “laxist” policies that would eventually require “the intervention of our comrades on active duty in a perilous mission of protection of our civilisational values.” The signatories warned that failure to act on the issue would result in deaths “in the thousands.”
Following this, General Lecointre had said that the signatories of the note would be facing a senior military council and could prospectively be “de-listed” or “put into immediate retirement.” However, Marine Le Pen was quick to come out in support of the letter, saying that she sympathised with the sentiments of the soldiers and urged them to back her in the upcoming French presidential elections in 2022.
The letter also comes just months after the French Parliament voted in favour of passing the “Reinforcing Republican Principles” Bill, a controversial proposed law that aims to target religious radicalism and separatism in the country. The bill has been criticised for targeting the Muslim community in France and has even sparked a major rift between Macron and several Islamic countries, with protestors taking to the streets demanding a boycott of French products and burning his pictures.
Nevertheless, it appears that a majority of the French population supports the sentiment of the note. A Harris Interactive poll conducted by LCI TV showed that 58% of the French population supported the soldiers in their call. Therefore, the recent events indicate that Islamic radicalism and religious extremism is likely to be a highly debated topic of discussion in the upcoming elections.
French Soldiers Warn of Dangers of Islamism, Military Chief Invites Them to Quit
Following an open letter by French soldiers warning the French government of a prospective “civil war” due to the dangers caused by Islamism. the Military Chief invited them to resign.
May 13, 2021
SOURCE: GRIPT