In brief
Mehdi Kessaci, aged 20, was shot and killed in Marseille while parked in his car. This follows the murder of his older brother, Brahim, in 2020. The family has become a tragic symbol of the increasing violence related to drug gangs in the city. The surviving brother, Amine, who has been raising awareness against drugs violence, is under police protection following the attacks tied to his campaign.
A young French campaigner, who set up an association to help victims of drug violence and took their cause to President Emmanuel Macron, has lost a second brother to suspected criminal gangs in Marseille.
Amine Kessaci's 20-year-old brother Mehdi was parking his car in the centre of the city when a motorcycle drew up and the pillion passenger opened fire with a 9mm pistol.
Their elder brother, Brahim, was murdered in 2020, with his charred body found in a burned-out car, a known method in gang killings referred to as a barbecue.
Marseille has seen escalating drug wars, with rival gangs fighting over dominion in high-immigration neighborhoods across the city. While Brahim had links to drug gangs, Mehdi was on a different path, aiming to become a policeman. Authorities speculate that his murder was a warning to Amine.
Following the tragic loss of his elder brother, Amine created an association called Conscience to assist youth in Marseille's impoverished neighborhoods in avoiding the clutches of powerful drug gangs. Having previously run for political office, Amine now lives under police protection after facing threats to his life.
It's just so sad for my friend and for his mother, lamented Christine Juste, a Green Party city councillor. No mother should go through that — losing two children. And I'm so angry that in France's second city, people can be murdered so easily in plain daylight. Vendettas lead to ongoing cycles of violence, which have already seen 14 drug-related murders in the city this year alone.
