The Public Prosecution in Lyon, France, on Thursday demanded that seven men be charged with “premeditated murder” in connection with the killing of activist Kantin Duranc (23 years old) as a result of a violent attack by political opponents belonging to the far left last week, with a request to imprison them in pretrial detention, with some of them confessing to the beating and denying the intention to kill.
Published on: 02/19/2026 - 22:09 Last updated: 02/20/2026 - 15:56
To view this content from YouTube, it is necessary to allow the collection of viewing rates and YouTube ads.
It appears that an application in your Internet browser is preventing the video player from loading. In order to view this content, you must cancel its use.
The Public Prosecution Office in the French city of Lyon on Thursday submitted a request to charge seven men suspected of killing a far-right activist after an attack by political opponents last week. Kantan Duranc, 23, died of a severe head injury on Saturday.
A source familiar with the investigation reported that two days before that, in the midst of a “violent battle” between “members of the far left and the far right,” the young man found himself “isolated,” thrown to the ground, and was kicked, especially in the head, by “at least six people” wearing masks and hats.
Lyon Public Prosecutor Thierry Dran announced, in a press conference, that he had requested the provisional imprisonment of seven suspects, especially because of the “risk of disturbing public order.”
He added that they "deny intent to kill," although "some of them admit to hitting Durank or other victims."
Read also: France: 11 people, including an assistant to a leftist MP, were arrested in connection with the killing of a far-right activist
The political context of the incident
Masked people attacked the young activist on February 12 on the sidelines of a far-right demonstration against a conference organized by Rima Hassan, the European MP belonging to the radical leftist “France Proud” party, in the city of Lyon.
Dran stressed that "identifying the people at the scene of the accident was difficult, and many of them still have to be identified."
The suspects are linked to the extreme left
Most of the suspects are linked to extremist leftist movements, including three close to the radical leftist MP Rafael Arnault, founder of the far-right anti-fascist youth group “Young Guard,” which was dissolved by decree in June 2025.
France 24/AFP
Keywords related to the article
The content you want to browse is no longer in service or is currently unavailable.
