Washington warned Friday of "left-wing political violence" in France following the killing of a far-right activist in Lyon a week ago. According to Deputy Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy Sarah Rogers, who pledged to continue “pursuing the issue,” “Once you decide to kill people for their opinions rather than to persuade them, you have chosen to exit civilization.”

Published on: 02/21/2026 - 07:00 Last updated: 02/21/2026 - 10:52

In response to the killing of a far-right activist in France after he was beaten, the administration of US President Donald Trump on Friday condemned “left-wing violence,” through statements by Deputy Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy Sarah Rogers, who said that the killing of Kontan Duranc shows “why we deal with political violence and terrorism so severely.”

She continued in a post on the X platform, “Once you decide to kill people because of their opinions instead of convincing them, you have chosen to leave civilization.”

"We will continue to pursue this case," Rogers added.

Read also: Macron is “surprised” by Meloni’s position after the killing of a far-right activist in France

The State Department's Counterterrorism Bureau published a separate statement saying, "Violent left-wing extremism is on the rise, and its role in the killing of Kontan Duranc demonstrates the threat it poses to public safety."

The official France Responsive X account responded to Rogers' post by sharing statistics about the much higher murder rate in the United States compared to France, and sarcastically added, "We will continue to follow this issue."

Derank (23 years old) died as a result of head injuries after being attacked by at least six people on the sidelines of a protest against a conference in which European Representative Rima Hassan of the radical leftist "Proud France" party participated in the city of Lyon (southeast) last week.

The incident caused a diplomatic dispute between France and Italy, whose right-wing Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has friendly relations with Trump.

Meloni described Duranek's killing as "a wound to all of Europe," prompting French President Emmanuel Macron to criticize her for speaking about French internal affairs.

France 24/AFP

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