French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau reiterated on Monday in Nanterre the existing measures to combat religious radicalization, urging prefectures to show «determination». Following a controversial report on the Muslim Brotherhood last week, President Emmanuel Macron is expecting «new proposals» from Matignon. During his visit to the Hauts-de-Seine prefecture, Retailleau expressed his intention to «make the state more effective in its fight against Islamism», defending the Cells for Combating Radical Islamism (CLIR) system established in 2019. Composed of representatives from various state services, these departmental-level bodies are described by the Interministerial Committee on Delinquency and Radicalization as aiming to «tackle Islamist ecosystems» by assessing the state of Islamism in a given area, centralizing information, and monitoring reported offenses. In this context, Retailleau seeks to deploy stronger cells in areas identified as more exposed to «Islamist infiltration». In practice, this means intensifying controls on the ground, particularly in sports clubs and cultural associations, which Retailleau has previously described as potential avenues for the Muslim Brotherhood to «infiltrate» society. Unconvinced by last week's defense committee briefing, Emmanuel Macron has tasked his minister with «developing new proposals». Following the meeting, Retailleau announced to senators plans for «better organization of the state» regarding intelligence matters. On Monday, he confirmed that «two new services» within the ministry would be mobilized: the National Directorate of Territorial Intelligence (DNRT) and the Directorate of Public Liberties, which is expected to act as an «administrative prosecutor». This would involve «gathering evidence and building cases with the aim of implementing administrative hindrance measures», including halting municipal subsidies, closing certain venues, and prosecuting individuals who incite hatred.
