The executive wants a national prosecutor's office antiterrorist broad-based

Announced and postponed, the National Anti-Terrorist Prosecutor's Office (PNAT) made a surprise return: the government finally confirmed Friday the creation of a specific prosecutor's office with broad powers, despite the opposition of many magistrates.

The fight against terrorism is now entrusted to a section of the Paris prosecutor's office, headed by Francois Molins. Become, attempt to attack, the face of anti-terrorism, the prosecutor Molins is about to leave this strategic position to join the Court of Cbadation.

"We consider together that it is now necessary to allow a prosecutor to devote himself full time to the fight against terrorism," said the Prime Minister in presenting a new "plan of action against terrorism" headquarters of the General Directorate of Internal Security (DGSI) in Levallois-Perret (Hauts-de-Seine)

Announced in December 2017 by the custody of the seals Nicole Belloubet then dismissed from the justice reform project presented in the spring, the PNAT will be included in the draft organic law accompanying that of programming for justice, expected in the autumn.

"This PNAT will benefit from a strengthened team of magistrates and civil servants, and its creation will be accompanied by the appointment of anti-terrorist prosecutors in the most exposed territorial prosecutors ", announced Edouard Philippe, without specifying these numbers.

" They will form a pool of my immediately and efficiently mobilized in the event of terrorist attacks. It is thus a true territorial mesh antiterrorist at the judicial level which we will create ", he insisted.

This new parquet will be the second specialized after the creation in 2013 of the national parquet financial (PNF), born of scandal of the hidden accounts of the former minister Jerome Cahuzac

– "Losing an overview" –

In a country bruised by the jihadist attacks, which have killed 246 people since 2015, this prosecution will be competent for all offenses related to terrorism but also for war crimes and crimes against humanity concerned by "the same lands", Iraq and Syria in particular.

What will be its perimeter? The government shows the ambition of a double degree of jurisdiction, allowing the future prosecutor to bring the accusation "from the instruction to the Assize Court." Currently, it is the Prosecutor General of the Court of Appeal of Paris which represents the accusation to the Assize Court [19659012] In December, the announcement of the creation of the PNAT had aroused very strong criticism among judges, including the Prosecutor General of Paris, Catherine Champrenault, who occupies one of the steering positions of the fight against terrorism in France. 19659003] "Why change what works?" She asked. "Today, when there is an attack, we have the opportunity to pool our resources, in communicating vessels, to dip into the pool of parquet of Paris, quickly mobilize 60 magistrates."

Terrorism feeding " a lot of delinquency ", especially" for the supply of weapons or materials ", she also felt that there was a great risk of" losing an overview ".

A risk also emphasized by the Council of Europe. The State, in its opinion of 12 April on the proposed reform of justice: the high court noted the risk of isolation of magistrates badigned to this prosecutor, with the disadvantage of losing the perception of the links between petty crime and terrorism, especially in the course of radicalization. "

Who will take the lead of this new parquet? Several names have circulated in recent weeks, especially among magistrates familiar with terrorist litigation, such as that of the general attorney at the Paris Court of Appeal, Maryvonne Caillibotte.

Currently, the terrorist dispute is managed by the antiterrorist section the Paris prosecutor's office, called C1, created in 1986 to deal with terrorist offenses just listed in the penal code, after a wave of attacks claimed by a group close to Hezbollah.

It was then mainly responsible for attacks related to Islamism and Corsican and Basque independence.

But since 2012, the number of his cases has doubled each year, because of the jihadist threat. It has been steadily reinforced and now has fourteen permanent specialized magistrates, about 10% of the Paris prosecutor's office.