“Urban Guerillas”?

By Charlie

VILLIERS-LE-BEL, France - Youths rampaged for a third night in the tough suburbs north of Paris and violence spread to a southern city late Tuesday as police struggled to contain rioters who have burned cars and buildings and — in an ominous turn — shot at officers.
A senior police union official warned that "urban guerrillas" had joined the unrest, saying the violence was worse than during three weeks of rioting that raged around French cities in 2005, when firearms were rarely used.

The last time I heard the phrase “Urban Guerillas”: was in a terrorism course I took, and it was in reference to the Mini-Manual of The Urban Guerrilla, by Carlos Marighella, written in June 1969.

Marighella defines urban guerrillas:

The urban guerrilla, however, differs radically from the criminal. The criminal benefits personally from his actions, and attacks indiscrimminately without distinguishing between the exploiters and the exploited, which is why there are so many ordinary people among his victims. The urban guerrilla follows a political goal, and only attacks the government, the big businesses and the foreign imperialists.

The “ominous turn” in the article was the use of shotguns by the “youths.” Marighella talks about this, specifically:

Shotguns can be useful if used at close range and point blank. They are useful even for a poor shot, especially at night when precision isn't much help.

Marighella concludes:

The urban guerrilla is engaged in revolutionary action for the people, and with them seeks the participation of the people in the struggle against the dictatorship and the liberation of the country. Beginning with the city and the support of the people, the rural guerrilla war develops rapidly, establishing its infrastructure carefully while the urban area continues the rebellion.

The only question I have, is that if the French are using the term “urban guerrilla,” do they understand the intent of the movement of the guerillas? If they are revolutionary, what is the goal of their revolution? Sharia enclaves in Paris suburbs? Are the French ok with this? Until this group can be defined in terms other than shotgun-toting “youths,” the groups goals, and deeper organization, ideology, and funding sources will remain as nondescript as the term “youths” is.

November 27, 2007 04:40 PM The Long War

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Comments

Charlie, they've lost the bubble. Old Europe is increasingly looking like a lost cause.

LtCol P · November 27, 2007 05:43 PM

The French are in a tough position. The MSM is not going to name these upstarts appropriately. So, let's call them what they are - aspiring Muslim terrorists. They are not urban guerrillas, disenfranchised youths, out-of-work slackers, or persons upset over spilled milk. As our 42nd President might have said, "they're f**k*n terrorists, stupid."

I do believe Sarkozy is the right man to lead France into the next decade. He was the interior minister during the 2005 riots and rightly labeled the rioters "scum". He's already shown his mettle in facing down, and breaking, the powerful French transportation union. He will take this battle to the immigrant-terrorists in their neighborhoods.

Plus, Sarkozy pledged to keep French forces in Afghanistan for as long as the U.S. is there.

Slam the MSM for their coddling of Muslims - but let's support the "new" France led by Sarkozy.

VFRMarine · November 28, 2007 06:08 AM

There is no doubt that the current seige of terror is a direct result of French policies that have led to a huge influx of Muslims, mostly from North Africa. The French population is now nearly 25 percent Muslim.

They are largely poor, un, or under, educated, unemployed, or in meanial jobs, and enjoying all the benefits of the welfare state. But they are still pi$$ed off because the aren't accepted and valued by the French.

We had better hope that Sarkozy is able to find a way to put and end to this crap most scoch, or it will eventually lead to a level of political problems that could unbalance much of western Europe.

Marine6 · November 28, 2007 06:33 AM