32 suspects arrested over arson in 22 departments

Paris – 12 July 2026: Since the beginning of summer, 32 people have been arrested in France on suspicion of having caused fires. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez announced this on Saturday, 11 July. The investigations extend across 22 departments. Around one third of the suspects are minors. The figure is therefore slightly higher than the initially reported number of around 30 arrests.

The arrests come amid a period of numerous vegetation and forest fires that have particularly affected the south and southeast of the country. According to the Gendarmerie, several departments have been affected since 1 July, including Herault, Aude, Var, Gard, Drome, Vaucluse and the Pyrenees-Orientales. Interior Minister Nunez visited Ille-sur-Tet in the Pyrenees-Orientales on 6 July after a fire there engulfed around 4,900 hectares of vegetation.

The police and Gendarmerie figures do not definitively distinguish between deliberate arson, negligent conduct and individual sequences of events. An arrest is also not a conviction. In every case, prosecutors must determine whether a fire was set intentionally, whether safety regulations were disregarded or whether other causes were involved. Especially in large-scale fires, proving a specific point of origin and an individual’s contribution to the offence is often complex.

Under the French Criminal Code, the intentional destruction of another person’s property by fire can be punished by up to ten years’ imprisonment and a fine of 150,000 euros. In cases of forest, scrubland or vegetation fires that endanger people or may cause irreversible environmental damage, the statutory penalty rises to up to 15 years’ imprisonment. Graduated sanctions apply to negligently caused fires, with the level depending on the breach of duty and the consequences.

The high number of minor suspects points to a particular challenge for investigators and the justice system. Juvenile criminal law applies to young people; educational measures are generally the focus, although serious offences do not go without consequences. Age alone, however, does not permit conclusions about motives. In individual proceedings, possible explanations include dares, vandalism, conflicts or negligent handling of open flames and equipment.

The government is combining criminal prosecution with a broader prevention strategy. The Interior Ministry had already pointed in June to the growing geographical extent of fire risk and launched a nationwide awareness campaign. The current summer shows that fighting fires is no longer solely a task for the fire service: it also requires forensic investigations, consistent prosecution and the reduction of human-caused ignition sources.