Narcotrafic: la marine française, un caillou dans la chaussure des trafiquants de cocaïne

La production s’envole, les saisies s’emballent: au large des Antilles, la marine française enchaîne des prises record de cocaïne destinée au marché européen, devenu exponentiel. Le coup porté aux trafiquants paraît anecdotique mais est indispensable.Plus de 2.700 tonnes. C’est la quantité de cocaïne proposée sur le marché mondial en 2022, soit un niveau record, selon l’Office des Nations unies contre la drogue et le crime (ONUDC) dans son dernier rapport.Cette année-là, la France a saisi 27,7 tonnes, d’après l’office anti-stupéfiants (Ofast), des quantités multipliées par cinq en 10 ans. En 2024, ce sont plus de 47 tonnes prises par les services français chargés de la lutte contre le trafic de stupéfiants, contre 23,2 tonnes en 2023, relève le ministère de l’Intérieur.”Le prix n’augmente pas, donc cela veut dire qu’on ne fait pas mal. Et c’est un peu ce qui me désespère: nous n’avons pas créé de manque”, déplore Clarisse Taron, la procureure de la République en Martinique de 2021 à 2024, alors qu’un gramme de cocaïne coûte 65 euros en France, un prix stable depuis 2021 (source Ofast).”Je me sens comme un hamster dans la roue. Nous pédalons, travaillons beaucoup et cela coûte beaucoup d’argent. Mais je ne pense pas qu’on bloque fondamentalement le trafic. Nous avons la prétention d’être un caillou dans la chaussure. Nous déroutons un peu, nous gênons. Mais je pense que pour des trafiquants de très haut niveau, cela fait presque partie de leur stratégie”, poursuit la magistrate.La Martinique, autrefois terre de rebond pour la cocaïne sud-américaine, est désormais une plaque tournante.Fabriquée en Colombie, au Pérou et en Bolivie, la cocaïne profite ces dernières années des côtes vénézuéliennes pour quitter le continent sud-américain et, via la Martinique et la Guadeloupe mais aussi la République dominicaine, se déverser sur le marché européen, devenu l’un des plus prospères, devant les États-Unis, passés aux drogues de synthèse (comme le fentanyl).La France lutte d’arrache-pied contre le narcotrafic maritime avec un programme permanent de coopération entre l’Union européenne et les Etats-Unis (Narcops) et des opérations Carib Royale. Ce sont des missions de trois semaines, à raison de deux à trois par an, menées par les frégates de surveillance Ventôse et Germinal des Forces armées aux Antilles (FAA), basées à Fort-de-France (Martinique).Les deux navires opèrent avec commandos d’assaut, tireur d’élite et hélicoptère pour intercepter des bateaux chargés de cocaïne lors de transbordements en haute mer de bateaux-mère, des voiliers partis des côtes vénézuéliennes et qui dispatchent leur grosse cargaison sur des bateaux-fille (go-fast).- “Défense de l’avant” -“Saisir des grosses quantités en mer plutôt que des petites quantités à terre, c’est quand même plus simple. C’est une forme de défense de l’avant: protéger le territoire national en luttant loin du territoire national”, argue le vice-amiral Nicolas Lambropoulos, commandant supérieur des FAA depuis août 2023, relevant que sur les 47 tonnes de cocaïne saisies en 2024, “40 tonnes ont été interceptées par la marine française”.En août dernier le patrouilleur Antilles-Guyane La Confiance a fait une prise de 10 tonnes.Les saisies ne se feraient pas sans les renseignements émanant de l’Ofast, du MAOC-N (structure internationale de collecte du renseignement maritime) ou encore de la Direction nationale du renseignement et des enquêtes douanières (DNRED).”Il faut toujours essayer de savoir, en se mettant à la place des trafiquants, ce qu’ils feraient pour essayer d’acheminer telle quantité de cocaïne à bon port. Il y a vraiment pour nous un volet d’anticipation de la menace pour, surtout, ne pas avoir d’angle mort”, explique le service de renseignement douanier.Et pour l’office, “clairement, s’il y a de la grosse saisie, cela veut dire qu’il y a de la grosse quantité qui passe”. “Il y a quand même une forme de robustesse de l’organisation, c’est puissant derrière. Elles ont de l’argent, elles corrompent toute une série de personnes qui sont présentes à des endroits clés de la chaîne logistique, entre le lieu d’expédition et le lieu de réception. Donc, les gens tentent et quand ça tente, il y a de la grosse saisie”, analyse le renseignement douanier.”Notre job, c’est d’appréhender les trafiquants. De faire en sorte que les zones sensibles, notamment dans la Caraïbe, ne basculent pas comme certains de nos voisins, complètement gangrénés par la capacité des trafiquants à corrompre les logisticiens et les intermédiaires notamment dans les ports et les aéroports. Et que La Martinique et la Guadeloupe ne deviennent pas ce genre de plate-forme. C’est une motivation qui est au-dessus de tout”, défend-il.Le chiffre d’affaires du trafic de drogue est estimé entre 3,5 et 6 milliards d’euros par an en France.

London stock market hits record high as global equities rally

London’s benchmark FTSE 100 index reached an all-time high Friday as global equities rallied and the dollar climbed on renewed optimism for the global economy.The index jumped to 8,490.84 points, surpassing an intra-day record achieved in May last year of 8,474.41. Around 1015 GMT, it stood at 8,484.67 points, up 1.1 percent compared with Thursday’s close.”After years of trying, and failing, to play catch up (with peers), the FTSE 100 appears to have finally caught the ball of investor enthusiasm,” noted Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown. “Although fresh volatility is expected on global markets after President (Donald) Trump returns to the White House, there may be more appetite to shelter in the resilience of the UK market.”Trump completes an extraordinary comeback Monday when he is inaugurated for a second term as US president.While a strong US economy and earnings are helping to lift equities, there are concerns that Trump’s planned tariffs and tax cuts could fire up inflation once more.He has set his eyes on hitting in particular Chinese imports, which risks not only strong retaliation but further weakening China’s economy, the world’s second biggest after the United States.Chinese share indices closed higher Friday after data showed China’s economy grew slightly quicker than expected last year.The five percent expansion was in line with the target set by Beijing but the weakest since 1990 — excluding the pandemic years — as leaders fought to address weak consumption and a painful debt crisis in the vast property sector.A surge in the final quarter was helped by a string of stimulus measures and a boost in retail sales.”Amid a relentless barrage of economic pessimism, China’s economy defied expectations with a robust five percent growth last year, nailing the government’s ambitious target,” said independent analyst Stephen Innes. “Although slightly outpacing analyst forecasts, this growth fell just shy of the 5.2 percent expansion seen in 2023, painting a picture of an economy with both promising highs and undeniable challenges,” Innes added.- UK concerns -In London, stocks have been boosted in recent days by a drop in UK government bond yields after a spike in state borrowing costs last week sent the pound tumbling.Sterling was lower Friday, reflecting ongoing strains for the British economy, which is struggling to grow despite falling inflation. Official data Friday revealed a surprise drop to UK retail sales in December.The FTSE 100 contains numerous multinationals whose revenues are largely earned in dollars, enabling them to profit from a falling pound.”Weakness of sterling, which makes overseas earnings more valuable on repatriation, has led to the UK’s primary index… (gaining) favour with investors,” said Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor.London and its European peers — along with Wall Street — have won support this week also as traders forecast more interest-rate cuts this year from major central banks.Indices have rallied also thanks to some positive company earnings and easing geopolitical concerns.Oil prices rose slightly as Israel’s security cabinet met Friday to vote on a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal that should take effect this weekend.- Key figures around 1015 GMT -London – FTSE 100: UP 1.1 percent at 8,484.67 pointsParis – CAC 40: UP 1.1 percent at 7,719.74Frankfurt – DAX: UP 1.1 percent at 20,874.76Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.3 percent at 38,451.46 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 0.3 percent at 19,584.06 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.2 percent at 3,241.82 (close)New York – Dow: DOWN 0.2 percent at 43,153.13 (close)Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0301 from $1.0306 on ThursdayPound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2202 from $1.2237Dollar/yen: UP at 155.64 yen from 155.17 yenEuro/pound: UP at 84.41 pence from 84.18 penceBrent North Sea Crude: UP 0.1 percent at $81.39 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: UP 0.2 percent at $78.05 per barrelburs-bcp/ajb/lth

A Lisbonne, une école perpétue l’art équestre portugais classé au patrimoine immatériel

Montée sur un marche-pied, Catarina Cabaça démêle puis brosse soigneusement la crinière d’un pur-sang lusitanien pour la tresser selon la tradition de l’art équestre portugais, classé début décembre au patrimoine immatériel de l’humanité de l’Unesco et qu’une école à Lisbonne maintient vivante.”Nous les préparons comme à l’époque!”, explique à l’AFP cette soigneuse de chevaux, qui tresse une natte à trois brins, comme cela se pratiquait à la cour royale portugaise au 18e siècle, avant un spectacle de l’école d’art équestre de Lisbonne, qui propose un véritable voyage dans le temps. Des cavaliers, montés sur des selles en peau de chamois ou de tapir, vêtus de costumes de gala avec manteaux de velours bordeaux, jambières en cuir et tricorne noir, enchaînent sur fond de musique classique des exercices chorégraphiés tels qu’ils se déroulaient à la cour royale.”Nous sommes très impressionnés par ce que nous venons de voir”, témoigne Thomas Goszczynsk, un retraité américain de 69 ans, après avoir assisté avec un groupe d’amis à ce spectacle qui perpétue “les traditions, l’artisanat, les compétences et la culture du passé”.Ce savoir-faire unique a amené le comité de l’Unesco, réuni en décembre au Paraguay, à inscrire l’art équestre portugais sur la liste du patrimoine culturel immatériel de l’humanité, s’ajoutant à d’autres traditions du pays ibérique, comme le fado, un chant traditionnel populaire empreint de mélancolie, reconnu en 2011.- “identité collective” -La technique portugaise de dressage équestre constitue une “source d’identité collective” et “se caractérise par la position du cavalier sur la selle, ainsi que par la tenue traditionnelle et les harnais utilisés”, a souligné l’agence onusienne.Aujourd’hui, cet art continue d’être pratiqué au Portugal et à l’étranger grâce au travail de nombreux éleveurs, artisans et cavaliers au sein d’académies, de centres hippiques et d’établissements comme l’école portugaise d’art équestre, créée en 1979 et qui compte actuellement une soixantaine de chevaux et une douzaine de cavaliers.”Nous sommes les gardiens de cet art national”, souligne Luis Calaim, administrateur de Parques Sintra, l’entité publique qui gère l’école équestre.Cette reconnaissance “est une responsabilité” car “nous jouons un rôle important dans sa préservation et sa divulgation”, estime pour sa part Carlos Tomas, 46 ans, l’un des cavaliers de cette école prestigieuse depuis près de 20 ans.L’art de l’équitation portugaise, qui se distingue aussi par l’harmonie entre le cavalier et l’animal, est intimement lié au cheval lusitanien, un pur-sang très ancien originaire du Portugal, qui jouit d’un grand prestige pour sa puissance, son allure relevée et agile mais aussi sa docilité et son obéissance.”C’est un cheval unique, différent de toutes les autres races. (…) Je le vois comme un produit portugais d’excellence, tout comme l’huile d’olive, le vin ou le liège”, commente Joao Pedro Rodrigues, maître-écuyer en chef de l’école équestre de Lisbonne.

Russia, Iran to harden military, trade ties in new pact

Russia and Iran are poised to sign a new treaty on Friday to cement military and economic ties between two of the world’s most heavily sanctioned nations, in a pact likely to worry the West.The agreement comes just days before Iran-hawk Donald Trump enters the White House and as Moscow and Tehran seek to formalise years of deepening cooperation. The details of the document have not been released, but the Kremlin has said it will strengthen Tehran and Moscow’s “military-political and trade-economic” relations.Moscow has looked to the Islamic republic as a strategic ally since sending troops into Ukraine in February 2022, worrying Western officials who see both as malign actors on the world stage.Iran has already supplied Russia with self-detonating “Shahed” drones that Moscow fires on Ukraine in nightly barrages, according to Ukrainian and Western officials, while both have ramped up trade amid Western sanctions.Tehran has given little detail on the new treaty, but has ruled out a mutual defence clause like the one included in Moscow’s pact with North Korea last year, Russian state media reported, citing Tehran’s top diplomat Abbas Araghchi.Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, who arrived in the Russian capital earlier, is expected to meet counterpart Vladimir Putin later for talks and to sign the agreement, Russian state news agencies reported.The two will also give a joint press conference, according to the Kremlin.- ‘Global hegemony’ -The two sides had been working on a new treaty for years. Their current relationship is governed by a 2001 document that they have renewed periodically.Russia says its upcoming pact with Iran and the already-signed treaty with Pyongyang are “not directed against any country”.”The treaty … is constructive in nature and is aimed at strengthening the capabilities of Russia, Iran, and our friends in various parts of the world,” Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said Tuesday.It is set to be valid for 20 years, Russia’s TASS news agency reported on Tuesday, citing the Iranian ambassador to Russia Kazem Jalali.Russian President Vladimir Putin has made building ties with Iran, China and North Korea a cornerstone of his foreign policy as he seeks to challenge what he calls as a US-led “global hegemony”. Both Russia and Iran are under heavy Western sanctions that include restrictions on their vital energy industries.At a summit of the BRICS group in Kazan last year, Putin told Pezeshkian he valued “truly friendly and constructive ties” between Russia and Iran.Iran has also sought closer ties with Russia, after suffering a series of foreign policy setbacks last year.A rebel offensive overthrew Russian and Iranian-backed Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad last month, and a war last year between Israel and Tehran-ally Hezbollah substantially weakened the Islamist militant group.Pezeshkian’s visit to Russia also comes just days before Iran-hawk Trump returns to power.The US president-elect, who is seeking a rapid end to the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, has made repeated military threats against the Islamic republic.During his first term, the Republican pulled out of an international deal that provided Iran sanctions relief in exchange for restrictions on its nuclear programme.In 2020, Iranian Revolutionary Guards commander Qasem Soleimani was assassinated in a US drone strike in Iraq on Trump’s orders, prompting a wave of fury in Iran.Trump last year warned the US would “wipe (Iran) off the face of the Earth” if an alleged Iranian plot to kill him last year had been succesful.

Yazeed al-Rajhi and Sanders record maiden Dakar Rally triumphs

Yazeed al-Rajhi made history on Friday by becoming the first driver from host nation Saudi Arabia to win the Dakar Rally.The Overdrive pilot held onto his overnight lead to beat South Africa’s Henk Lategan in a Toyota by 3min 57sec with Mattias Ekstrom of Sweden third in his Ford, more than 20min adrift.Rajhi, 43, had previously recorded a best finish of third in 2022.Saudi Arabia have hosted the Dakar Rally since 2020, when it moved from South America.”I am very, very happy to do it, it is not an easy race, it’s the toughest one that I’ve done in the last eleven years,” said Rajhi.”For sure, we have made a lot of records today: the first Saudi driver to win and also in the last twenty-five years no private team beat a factory team but we did it this time.”Also, it’s the first time there is a winner on the Dakar from the same country in which it is raced, with a Saudi guy winning a Saudi Dakar.”There was also a first win in the world’s most famous endurance rally for Australia’s KTM rider Daniel Sanders in the motorbike category.The car category lost a lot of its gloss with two high-profile retirements early in the race.Four-time winner and defending champion Carlos Sainz exited on the second stage after an accident.A stage later it was France’s nine-time world rally champion Sebastien Loeb who departed, his Dakar jinx continuing as he was disqualified by the race stewards after his Dacia car was damaged in a crash.Five-time winner Nasser al-Attiyah never really landed a blow but the Qatari took final stage honours on Friday and finished fourth overall.      Sanders, 30, dominated from the moment he won the prologue and finished a comfortable 8min 50sec faster than Spanish runner-up Tosha Schareina on his Honda.Sanders is the first rider to record three successive stage wins since Spain’s Joan Barreda achieved the feat in the 2017 edition held between Bolivia and Argentina.Sanders is the second Australian to prevail in the motorbike category after Toby Price emerged victorious in 2016 and 2019.”It was a tough race,” said Sanders.”The last three days couldn’t come quick enough. It was really, really exciting to see the finish line when we came over one dune.”You see the whole bivouac, I just smiled and had chills go through my whole body. Super special, won’t forget that moment.”Schareina, 29, said second place did not leave a bitter taste in the mouth, indeed he revelled in the achievement considering what the grizzled veterans of the event had told him. “I’m super happy to be here on the finishing line,” he said.”It was a really hard race and many of the veterans have told me that.”It was the toughest ever edition, so I’m super happy to be here on the finishing line, so happy for the team and for everybody taking this second place we have earned.”I’m super happy for Daniel, he has done a great job and had a great two weeks.”I think the ten minutes more or less he took on the first day allowed him to control the race from then, but I’m super happy for them.”

Israeli security cabinet meets on ceasefire deal

Israel’s security cabinet met Friday to vote on a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal that should take effect this weekend.If approved, the agreement would halt fighting and bombardment in Gaza’s deadliest-ever war and initiate on Sunday the release of dozens of hostages held in the territory since Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.Under the deal struck by Qatar, the United States and Egypt, the ensuing weeks should also see the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.Israeli strikes have killed dozens of people since the deal was announced, while Israel’s military said Thursday it had hit about 50 targets across Gaza over the past day.The ceasefire would take effect on the eve of Donald Trump’s inauguration as president of the United States.”The security cabinet meeting to discuss and vote on the deal has started,” an Israeli official told AFP.Should the plan be approved, “the release of the hostages can proceed according to the planned framework, with the hostages expected to be released as early as Sunday”, the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.Even before the start of the truce, Gazans displaced by the war to other parts of the territory were preparing to return home.”I am waiting for Sunday morning when they will announce the ceasefire,” said Nasr al-Gharabli, who fled his home in Gaza City for a camp further south in the territory.”I will go to kiss my land, and I already regret leaving Gaza and my land. If I die on my land, it would be better than being here as a displaced person.”In Israel, there was joy but also pain over the fate of hostages who have died or been killed since their capture.In Tel Aviv, pensioner Simon Patya said he felt “great joy” that some hostages would return alive, but also “great sorrow for those who are returning in bags, and that will be a very strong blow, morally”.- ‘Confident’ -The lead-up to Friday’s meeting has been fraught with uncertainty, with Netanyahu’s office accusing Hamas of reneging on key parts of the deal to extort last-minute concessions — an allegation Hamas denied.Once the security cabinet votes on the agreement, it will go to the government for final approval.At least two far-right cabinet members had voiced opposition to the deal, but US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, whose government is Israel’s close ally, said he believed the ceasefire would go ahead on schedule.”I am confident, and I fully expect that implementation will begin, as we said, on Sunday,” he said.- Dozens killed – Gaza’s civil defence agency said Israel pounded several areas of the territory after the deal was announced on Wednesday, killing more than 100 people and wounding hundreds since then.Hamas’s armed wing, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, warned that Israeli strikes were risking the lives of hostages due to be freed under the deal, and could turn their “freedom… into a tragedy”.The war began with the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,210 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of official Israeli figures.During the attack, the deadliest in Israeli history, Palestinian militants also took 251 people hostage, 94 of whom are still being held in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.Israel’s ensuing campaign has destroyed much of Gaza, killing 46,788 people, most of them civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry that the UN considers reliable.- Trump and Biden -The ceasefire agreement followed intensified efforts from mediators after months of fruitless negotiations, and with Trump’s team taking credit for working with US President Joe Biden’s administration to seal the deal.”If we weren’t involved in this deal, the deal would’ve never happened,” Trump said in an interview Thursday.A senior Biden official said the unlikely pairing had been a decisive factor in reaching the deal.Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani, announcing the agreement on Wednesday, said an initial 42-day ceasefire would see 33 hostages released, including women, “children, elderly people, as well as civilian ill people and wounded”.Also in the first phase, Israeli forces would withdraw from Gaza’s densely populated areas and allow displaced Palestinians to return “to their residences”, he said.Two sources close to Hamas told AFP three Israeli women soldiers would be the first to be released on Sunday evening.They would be received by Red Cross aid workers as well as Egyptian and Qatari teams, one source said on condition of anonymity.”They will then be transported to Egypt, where they will be handed over to the Israeli side present there to complete the handover and conduct necessary medical examinations,” the source said.”Afterward, they will be transported directly to Israel. (Israel) is then expected to release the first group of Palestinian prisoners, including several with high sentences,” the source added.Biden said the second phase of the agreement could bring a “permanent end to the war”.He added the deal would “surge much needed humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians, and reunite the hostages with their families”.burs-ser/ysm