Numerous gendarmes arrived to evict the "zad du milieu," a protest camp set up in a private forest in Feugarolles, Lot-et-Garonne, to stop the LGV Bordeaux-Toulouse high-speed rail project. The camp was dismantled by the gendarmerie after a prefectural order was issued on September 29, citing the risk of forest fires. At the time, Météo-France had issued an orange alert for fire risk, but on the day of the operation, the weather service downgraded the alert to green, the lowest level of risk. The gendarmerie deployed around 100 officers for the operation, with five officers assigned to each demonstrator. The activists had set up the camp nearly two weeks earlier to prevent the start of construction work on the LGV project, which includes tree felling beginning on October 1st as part of archaeological investigations. The project is expected to reduce travel time between Bordeaux and Toulouse by 56 minutes but would affect 4,800 hectares of land, including forests and wetlands, at a cost exceeding 20 billion euros, according to financial studies from early 2026. Jean-Jacques, a 76-year-old retired priest and local resident, used a mini-digger to repair the access road to his forest, claiming it was necessary to prevent erosion. He opposes the rail project, calling it "out of time" and arguing that those funding it through taxes will not benefit. A local resident humorously referred to him as the "curé [priest] who put the shovel across the road." During the dismantling, activists were fined, and agents from the Albret Communauté intercommunal community, requisitioned for the cleanup, began dismantling the installations. Some protesters engaged in discussions with police and municipal technicians, with varying degrees of success. One activist, who called herself Gaïa and wore a t-shirt labeled "ecoterrorist," tried to reason with the intercommunal agents, questioning their stance on forest destruction. Three occupants of the camp climbed onto the roof of the last cabin to try to defend it. The National Support Cell for Mobility of the gendarmerie intervened to ensure their safety during the dismantling. Tension rose when an opponent perched in a tree shouted, "Lower your LBD yourself!" to a gendarme. As the dismantling ended, the activists sang activist songs to the gendarmes using a ukulele. A legal challenge has been filed by the landowner to suspend the prefectural order to dismantle the camp, which will be reviewed on Thursday, October 1st, at the Bordeaux appeals court. Activists hope to reestablish a camp on the private land outside the summer period, with the landowner's agreement.