A group of Muslims in France are filing lawsuits against the French government over what they allege are illegal arrests and raids made since the Paris attacks. The French government declared a national state of emergency after the attacks which killed 130 people, granting police major powers to put people under house arrest and carry out raids without a warrant from a judge. The powers are set to expire on February 26. Attorney Xavier Nogueras is representing 12 Muslim clients who have been placed under house arrest. He alleges that the state unfairly targeted his clients based on unproven suspicions. At least 20 complaints against the government have been filed by six independent lawyers, according to Al-Jazeera America. In November an administrative court ruled that the government had committed no "obvious legal breach" in making the arrests. The Sunday Express reported that France has since reversed a number of the house arrest decisions. These cases highlight the complexities of combatting terrorism while upholding civil liberties and human rights. The details of these cases are not public, nor are the intelligence sources used to place these individuals under house arrest. It remains essential that the state is empowered to act swiftly to monitor and detain suspects in the interests of national security. It is also imperative that nebulous claims of national security to not become carte blanche for the government to arrest whoever they like whenever they like and erode the hard-won civil liberties which are the basis of a free society. "We are looking for solutions. And it is more difficult [for us], given how complicated it is" said French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve but it's our democratic duty as a republic." These considerations will only become more important in the weeks and months to come.
