Although contested by local elected officials, the threat is taken seriously by national authorities.
The Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, announced Thursday that he had offered "close protection" to the professor of philosophy of Trappes who indicated to be the subject of "hate speech" since he defended the murdered teacher Samuel Paty in a text.
“Didier Lemaire had benefited from the protection of the Yvelines police services for several days.
I offered him this afternoon (Thursday) to also benefit from close protection, ”announced Gérald Darmanin in a tweet.
Didier Lemaire had benefited for several days from the protection of the Yvelines police services.
This afternoon I suggested that he also benefit from close protection.
The State is at the rendezvous of its protection.
- Gérald DARMANIN (@GDarmanin) February 11, 2021
This protection will be provided by the Protection Service (SDLP), responsible for the protection of leaders and threatened personalities, specifies the Ministry of the Interior.
Didier Lemaire, who accepted this proposal, explains that he will "leave teaching, but not necessarily National Education".
Before specifying that "everything depends on the mission that could" be entrusted to him.
"Lies" and "untruths"
An investigation was opened last month for "threats to a person charged with a public service mission" after "concerns vis-à-vis Professor [Didier Lemaire] against whom threats were allegedly made" were reported at the Versailles parquet.
For a week, Didier Lemaire has explained in the media that he is the subject of "hate speech" in his town, "attacks" which, according to him, are a way of designating him "as a target".
They followed the publication in L'Obs of his open letter of November 1, in which he denounced "the State's lack of strategy to defeat Islamism".
"Philosophy professor at Trappes for 20 years, I have witnessed the progress of an ever stronger community hold on consciences and bodies", he wrote in particular in this text.
In a statement, the prefect of Yvelines, Jean-Jacques Brot, judged “counterproductive to seem to stigmatize the 32,000 inhabitants of this city who, for the vast majority of them, are attached to republican values”.
As for the mayor Génération.
s of the city, Ali Rabeh, he evokes "lies" and "untruths", assuring in particular that Didier Lemaire had "never been the object of a serious threat".