Overview

• Over 130 complaints of physical and sexual abuse at Notre-Dame-de-Bétharram have been filed, detailing incidents spanning from 1957 to 2004.
• Two suspects, including a former school employee and a lay supervisor, remain in custody, while a third, a retired priest, has been released from questioning.
• Victims describe a pervasive culture of violence, exploitation, and silence during their time at the institution, with some accounts dating back to the 1950s.
• Prime Minister François Bayrou faces allegations of prior knowledge of abuse during his tenure as Minister of Education in the 1990s, which he denies.
• The French government has announced strengthened oversight measures for private schools, while a parliamentary commission investigates state and institutional failures.