A pedestrian walks past a bouquet of flowers at a makeshift memorial where Mehdi Kessaci was murdered, the day of his funeral in Marseille on 18 November 2025. CHRISTOPHE SIMON / AFP

French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday, November 18, urged more measures against drug crime after the brother of a prominent anti-narcotics activist was murdered last week in the southern city of Marseille, a minister said. France's second-largest city is struggling to battle drug crime, with more than a dozen people killed since the start of the year in turf wars and other disputes linked to cocaine and cannabis dealing.

Macron convened an emergency meeting with cabinet ministers after an unidentified gunman killed the 20-year-old younger brother of activist and Greens party member Amine Kessaci, 22, in Marseille on Thursday last week.

Subscribers only

Brother of Marseille anti-drugs figure murdered on street