Historical Dictionary of Terrorism Third Edition

470 • NATIONAL FRONT FOR THE LIBERATION OF CORSICAMay 1980, apparently in retaliation for the sentencing of sevenCorsican separatists that day. On 23 April 1983 French policeuncovered two FLNC arms caches and discovered an FLNC counterfeitingoperation.In Corsica during 1995 about 602 bomb attacks were carried outand about 574 in 1996, but many of these were linked to organizedcrime rather than the FLNC in the view of French prosecutors. On 5October 1996 the Bordeaux City Hall was bombed and responsibilityclaimed by the FLNC. A dozen suspects were arrested on 24 October1996 who were associates of François Santoni, head of the CuncoltaNaziunalista, the FLNC political front. On 9 February 1996, 50bombs were exploded on Corsica by the FLNC. On 2 February 1997the FLNC exploded 58 bombs between 4:30 a.m. and 5:30 a.m. at13 post offices, 12 tax offices, several state-run banks, chambers ofcommerce, two Air France offices, and an office for war veterans.Only one blast occurred in the regional capital of Ajaccio; most occurredin widely separated villages. The attacks involved perhaps120 to 150 perpetrators. None of these blasts injured anyone, andthe FLNC appeared to adhere to a policy of attacking property andsymbolic targets but avoiding human casualties.By 1990 the FLNC had split into two main groups, the FLNCcanalhistorique and the FLNC-canal habituel, as well as smallerfactions, many of which abandoned the group’s anticasualty policy.While the FLNC-canal historique faction increased its activities toinclude more bombing on the French mainland and more attacksagainst French offices, the FLNC-canal habituel faction ended itsactivities in 1997. On 6 February 1998 the FLNC-canal historiquemurdered Claude Erignac, the prefect of the island, by shooting himin the back of his head. About 40,000 of the 250,000 people of Corsicatook part in marches on 11 February 1998 to protest the murderof Erignac. This event led the French government to send an elitepolice security squad of 85 officers to Corsica with instructions notonly to crack down on terrorism but also to clean up various formsof official corruption and private tax evasion. In late September 1999the FLNC-canal historique carried out two bombings against a powerstation and police station in Propriano and attempted a third bombingagainst customs officials, which failed. No one was harmed inany of these attacks even though the last one was intended to kill ormaim. During 1999 the FLNC-canal historique merged with several