A terrorist attack targeted the Besançon courthouse on 9 May 1970. It was perpetrated with a bomb by two men from the OAS and UDR movements, in a context of the resurgence of far-right violence in France.
Attack On 9 May 1970, at 10:30 pm, the place du Huit-Septembre (September 8 Square) was shaken by an explosion.Willy Graff for L'Est Républicain, April 6, 2021 : « Savez-vous que Besançon a été frappé d’un attentat en 1970 ? ». The Besançon courthouse was just attackedChristian Bougeard, René Pleven - Un Français libre en politique, 1994, Presses universitaires de Rennes, 473 pages, , page 310.Hervé Hamon et Patrick Rotman, Les années de poudre - Volume 2, Auguste 29, 2016, Éditions du Seuil, 704 pages, . with a bomb containing explosives and scrap metal. Damage was substantial but limited: only the porch, the bay windows, and the salle des pas perdus (hall of lost steps), partly classified, were seriously affected. A couple and their baby narrowly escaped the impact, but no one injuries were reported. The mayor, the socialist Jean Minjoz, immediately condemned this act, while the investigation began. Witnesses said they saw a man throw a device through, before escaping in an accomplice's car. At first the attack was attributed to the left,Dominique Lejeune, La peur du rouge en France - Des partageux aux gauchistes, 2003, Belin, 303 pages, , page 248.Le nouvel observateur, 1974, page 28. but two individuals were arrested on 14 May based on the number from their registration plate. They were former soldiers, workers at the Rhodiaceta factory, one was a member of the OAS and the other a member of the UDRL'Année politique, économique, sociale et diplomatique en France, 1970, Éditions du Grand Siècle, page 31.Gérard Vincent and Véronique Aubert, Les Français, 1945-1975 - chronologie et structures d'une société, 1977, Masson, 383 pages, , page 200.Le Monde, May 16, 1970, « Besançon : les deux auteurs de l'attentat contre le palais de justice n'étaient pas des gauchistes » acting for defiant motives possibly related to access to power through the SAC.Sébastien Laurent, Politiques du renseignement, 2009, Presses universitaires de Bordeaux, 355 pages, , page 132.Bernard Thomas, Les provocations policières, 1972, Fayard, 508 pages, page 385. The suspects admitted the facts, while weapons and ammunition were found.
See also 2005 Planoise Forum fire Saint-Michel cinema attack
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