France will summon US Ambassador Charles Kushner to protest comments from the Trump administration regarding the fatal beating of far-right activist Quentin Deranque, Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Saturday.
The move follows a post by the US State Department’s Counterterrorism Bureau on X, which said that “reports, corroborated by the French Minister of the Interior, that Quentin Deranque was killed by left-wing militants, should concern us all.”
Deranque died last week in Lyon from brain injuries sustained during an attack linked to a scuffle at a student meeting where far-left lawmaker Rima Hassan was speaking. The incident has heightened concerns over political tensions ahead of France’s next presidential election.
President Emmanuel Macron urged calm as about 3,000 people marched in Lyon in tribute to Deranque, in a rally organised by far-right groups, reports AP.
Barrot condemned attempts to politicize the tragedy, saying, “We reject any instrumentalization of this tragedy, which has plunged a French family into mourning, for political ends. We have no lessons to learn, particularly on the issue of violence, from the international reactionary movement.”
The State Department described “violent radical leftism” as a growing threat and said it would monitor the situation, expecting justice for those responsible. Prosecutors in Lyon confirmed seven suspects face preliminary charges: six with intentional homicide, aggravated violence, and criminal conspiracy, and one with complicity.
Barrot also intends to raise US sanctions against former EU commissioner Thierry Breton and French ICC judge Nicolas Guillou, calling them “unjustified and unjustifiable.” No date has been set for the meeting.
Kushner was previously summoned in August last year after a letter to Macron accused France of insufficient action against antisemitism.
