"Historically it's one of the most important parts of the period of World War II in France,the roundup - the rafle du Vel dHiv - is a symbol of collaboration between the French police and the German occupying authorities."
VOA: standard.2010.04.10
The gangs, says Mr Silva, are simply occupying the space left vacant by the legitimate authorities.
"We have a larger proportion of households occupying temporary accommodation for longer periods than other authorities, thus presenting the image that we have a disproportionate number of homeless households, " the spokesperson added.