By Alexandre RODDE, a lieutenant in the gendarmerie operational reserve, a researcher specializing in terrorism and mass killings issues

" The year 2022 marks the gradual end of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has been a period of intense activity for extremist movements in France, allowing them to carry out more consistent propaganda actions and recruitment activities. The unprecedented health crisis had indeed confronted the French security forces with daily crisis situations, limiting their ability to monitor the developments of extremist movements. The uncertainty linked to the pandemic situation had also allowed the development of conspiracy theories, favoring propaganda and radicalization within the different movements. In 2022, the national and international news, marked by the French presidential elections and the war in Ukraine, had a different impact on the three main movements present in France. The number and scale of terrorist actions in the country nevertheless decreased during 2022, even if disparities are observed within the jihadist movement (I), the French ultra-left (II) and the ultra-right (III)."

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