Sarkozy: Police detain 19 suspected extremists
PARIS – President Nicolas Sarkozy says police in cities around France have detained 19 people in a crackdown on suspected Islamist extremists.
Sarkozy said on Europe-1 radio Friday that weapons were seized in some of the raids, including AK-47 assault rifles.
He said more such operations are planned.
The raids come after a spate of killings in southern France. A Frenchman who espoused radical Islamist views and said he had links to al Qaida claimed responsibility for the killings. He was killed in a gunfight with police last week.