Female tourists at French music festival where women were injected with rape drugs describe being attacked and say it was 'like an apocalypse'

By ELIANA SILVER, SENIOR FOREIGN NEWS REPORTER and PETER ALLEN and ELIZABETH HAIGH, SENIOR NEWS REPORTER Published: 11:51, 23 June 2026 | Updated: 11:59, 23 June 2026 Female tourists who attended a festival in Paris where women were injected with date-rape drugs have called the event an 'apocalypse', and described being attacked. More than 240 people were arrested, on Sunday's Fête de la Musique – a nationwide 'street party' attended by thousands of British people. Two people were stabbed, and others raped, as France's biggest open air music festival descended into intense violence. Police also reported multiple other sexual assaults, muggings, and girls being stabbed with syringes, on a night of anarchy. One female victim said she was 'beaten' by two 'North African women' during the chaos.  In a video posted on X, she claimed the pair approached her and her friend, snatched her phone, hurled it to the ground and then assaulted her friend.  'One of the two girls who had already thrown my phone to the ground and hit my friend then approached us. She pushed my friend to the ground and started hitting us and kicking us in the head,' she said. 'About three minutes later, some men arrived, followed by the police, but there was nothing we could do. The girls gave their version of events, while my friend and I were left in tears.' And one Irish woman who attended the festival took to TikTok to warn others not to go.  'There's no music, it's world war Z,' she said, adding: 'It's only sirens and mobs and pandemonium. It's like the apocalypse.'  One female victim said she was 'beaten' by two North African women during the chaos One Irish woman who attended the festival took to TikTok to warn others not to go In one clip, a man appears to swing a barstool at a car and a group of men, while others nearby kick and stomp on another man as he lies in the street  One video shows festivalgoers jumping on the shattered windscreen of a vehicle as music blares Fresh videos circulating on social media show groups of young men smashing up cars and brawling in the streets, while piles of litter line the pavements. In one clip, a man appears to swing a barstool at a car and a group of men, while others nearby kick and stomp on another man as he lies in the street.  Another shows festivalgoers jumping on the shattered windscreen of a separate vehicle as music blares and people dance around it.  A 40-year-old man and woman, who have not been named, were attacked in the early hours of Monday. In the south west city of Toulouse, a male victim was knifed, close to midnight, while the woman was knifed in nearby Colomiers soon afterwards. On Monday, both were in hospital and described as being 'in a stable condition'. An investigating source said: 'Camera footage of the Fête de la Musique is being studied to try and find those using knives to stab people.' There were also attacks on the streets of Paris, as thugs started fights in the centre of the city. Car windows were smashed, and attempts made to break into shops, while thefts were commonplace. There were some 148 arrests in Paris alone, according to an Interior Ministry spokesman, and '243 across France as a whole'. More than ten incidents of women being attacked with syringes were reported, as unidentified substances were injected inside them. And a man was briefly detained for 'carrying syringes on his belt' in Paris, before running away. A young woman in the 9th arrondissement was injected and then raped by a man in a private residence around 9.30pm, said the Interior Ministry spokesman. In the northern suburb of Gagny, a 48-year-old man was arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl. And in Nogent-sur-Marne, another Paris suburb, a 15-year-old girl also reported being raped after attending a concert. Alcohol was officially banned, but plenty of people were carrying their own bottles of wine, beer and spirits More than 240 people were arrested, two people stabbed, and others raped, as France's biggest open air music festival descended into intense violence More than two million people attended the festival in Paris, where the first trouble started soon after 11pm, in the Châtelet area of the city, close to Notre Dame Cathedral. 'Streets became dangerously overcrowded, and trouble makers took advantage,' said a British witness, who asked to be referred to as Steve. 'A group of young men – some in Paris St Germain football shirts – began punching people, causing chaos. 'People were screaming, and there was a real fear that the fighting would cause a massive crush as people tried to get away.' There was also trouble across the River Seine, in the St Germain de Prés district, where officers used tear gas to control crowds. It followed President Emmanuel Macron pleading for calm, after Paris St Germain (PSG) supporters went on the rampage through the city following their team's victory over Arsenal in the European Champions League Final last month. Macron said: 'We are all going to be very vigilant, and you have to be vigilant yourselves – for yourselves, for your loved ones, for the most vulnerable. 'It is very important to follow all the recommendations, to celebrate and to be happy at this time, but to be so while being vigilant about the temperature.' There were tropical temperatures of 30C+ in Paris across the weekend, so increasing fears that there would be trouble at the festival. Alcohol was officially banned, but plenty of people were carrying their own bottles of wine, beer and spirits, while cannabis was being smoked openly. The annual free music event sees mainly amateur artists performing on streets, squares and boulevards. It has been running for more than 40 years, and music fans from the UK are some of its most enthusiastic participants. Lamia El Aaraje, Paris's deputy mayor, had called for 'Europe's youth to come and party'. This was despite incidents of hooliganism and sexual assault in 2025. El Aaraje said: 'Last year there was an impact on the public space, there were excesses, incidents, lots of sexual violence.' Last year, there were reports of women and girls being among those being pricked with syringes containing suspicious substances. This year, there were special cordoned-off safe spaces for women and disabled people in key locations, including near Bastille square. During the PSG celebrations last month, two fans died after drowning in the River Seine, and there was widespread rioting. This meant there were almost 5,000 police and gendarmes on the street last night, but they were told to hang back from crowds, and only intervene in incidents if 'absolutely necessary,' according to a senior Interior Ministry source. No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? 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