Amine Kessaci, a 23-year-old law student from Marseille, has emerged as a leading activist against organized crime networks in France following the deaths of his two brothers. The elder brother, Brahim, was killed and burned in a car in 2020 when Kessaci was a teenager. The younger brother, Mehdi, was shot dead in November 2025 during the height of Kessaci’s public campaigning against drug trafficking. The killings have intensified Kessaci’s work to expose the operations of cartels that government officials have described as posing a greater national threat than terrorism.
Five men with alleged ties to DZ Mafia, a major Marseille-based organized crime group, will stand trial in Aix-en-Provence beginning Monday for Brahim’s murder. The three-week hearing is expected to reveal details about cartel bosses with such significant power they can allegedly order killings from prison. The trial represents a focal point in France’s broader struggle with narco gangs, which operate with annual revenues in the billions of euros and have ordered dozens of killings in recent years. The issue has become politically significant ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
Kessaci has pursued multiple avenues to combat drug trafficking’s influence. He has written a book, joined the Green party as an activist, and was elected this year as a deputy mayor of Marseille. He currently heads the city’s social housing organization. Kessaci argues that drug gangs exploit economic desperation by recruiting teenagers on low-income housing estates with promises of high daily earnings, while media glorification through television series and social media influencers perpetuates false glamorous images of the criminal lifestyle.
According to Kessaci, the root causes of gang recruitment are systemic. He contends that young people on struggling estates lack economic opportunity, quality education, and adequate public services, making them vulnerable to what he describes as the gangs’ “capitalist lie.” He advocates for social and economic solutions, including improved public services, better education, and addressing housing issues. Kessaci emphasizes that countering the appeal of drug trafficking requires giving young people genuine opportunities and perspectives for their futures rather than relying solely on enforcement measures.
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