83
PARIS (AP) — France’s interior minister says there was a "kind of racism" behind the bombings of several vacation homes on the French island of Corsica but stopped short of saying nationalist groups were responsible.
Officials have said that the homes targeted were mostly second residences, which often belong to mainland French. Manuel Valls called on Corsican politicians to more firmly condemn the attacks, saying there was no difference between Corsica and France.
While Corsica is wholly French, it has significant autonomy and maintains a distinct language and culture. Homegrown nationalists have long resented the influx of "continentals" each summer.
Corsica is also home to criminal gangs, which have carried a campaign of killings this year.
Valls vowed in a television interview Sunday that the government would fight both Mafioso and nationalist violence.
