Former Macron advisor: I made a big mistake, but I did not betray the president

No, he does not want to "betray" the French president, as Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday. But: "I made a big mistake," said Thursday the Elysee assistant, Alexandre Benalla, fired from his output during a demonstration in Paris on May 1, 1945.

"I've never had an observer According to him, the fact that he" helped "the police to arrest violent protesters was only a" political mistake " , but not a violation of the law

Benalla's statements end at the Elysée's defensive line Thursday morning, President Emmanuel Macron spoke during a visit by Work in the Pyrenees from a "storm in a glass of water." He previously accused the French press of blowing up the case and no longer seeking the truth.

Imaging Macron [19659004] In the very comprehensive interview with Le Monde, Benalla explains that in the Macron campaign he was involved because he had experience as an organizer, especially to the Socialist Party. Also at the presidential palace, where he went to work after the election victory in 2017, he said that he did not have a strictly secure role. During private visits of the presidential couple, he also spoke of "the image of the president". This has regularly led to "friction" with the official security agents.

Before that, he received a salary of 6,000 euros net per month. Previously, in the French press, amounts of 10,000 euros circulated. He has also had access to an apartment in an annex of the Elysee since July. But it was less generous and bigger than some media

Internal fight of the victim

Benalla says that he is the victim of an internal struggle with the police. "They could also hit the president."

A member of the Paris Police Department would have invited him to attend the police intervention on May 1 as an observer. The police helmet, a bracelet and a radio were provided to him through the intermediary of a liaison officer of the Elysee. In particular, the wristband (with the text "Police") and the radio have sparked numerous discussions within the parliamentary commission charged with investigating the matter in recent days

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In Searching

Wednesday night, the police investigated his office in the Elysee, a very exceptional situation.

But the office of the French president did not suspend him or demote him because he broke the law, but because he made "a political mistake", he said. Benalla, herself a lawyer, refers to a law article that gives every citizen the opportunity to arrest the perpetrators of a crime.

Paris was the scene of an urban guerrilla on May 1 after the participation of hundreds of black activists. traditional trade union demonstrations. A total of 283 people were arrested after extensive vandalism.