FAQ
Status: 12/24/2022 2:24 p.m
Several shots, three dead and many unanswered questions: After the attack on Kurds in Paris, investigations are underway. What is known about the motive of the alleged perpetrator? How is the Kurdish community reacting? An overview.
What happened?
In Paris on Friday, a man shot and killed three people and wounded three others. The deadly shots were fired in a Kurdish community center, among other places. According to the mayor of the tenth arrondissement of Paris, Alexandra Cordebard, the attacker also fired shots at a restaurant and a hairdressing salon opposite the center, near the Gare de l’Est train station.
An eyewitness later reported what he observed. “We were walking down the street when we heard shots and turned around.” People then dodged to the right and left. A few minutes later, the eyewitness saw how an “elderly, tall man was arrested in the hairdressing salon” – he also saw three injured people.
The alleged perpetrator was arrested. He is in police custody. He was also said to have been injured. The public prosecutor’s office is now also investigating a possible racist motive, the French public prosecutor’s office announced at noon – on suspicion of murder, attempted murder, armed violence and violation of the weapons law for racist motives. The French could face life imprisonment.
The scene of the crime – the small Rue d’Enghien in the 10th arrondissement of Paris – is usually a busy street with a greengrocer, pharmacy, cafés, but also with the Kurdish cultural center, barber’s shop and Kurdish restaurant.
After an attack with three dead in Paris – this is the current situation
S.Markert, ARD Paris, B.Buck, tagesschau, tagesschau24 09:00 a.m., 24.12.2022
Who were the victims?
The lawyer for the Kurdish community center announced that all three fatalities were members of the Kurdish community.
What is known about the alleged perpetrator?
The alleged perpetrator is a 69-year-old Frenchman, a former train driver from the Paris area. According to prosecutor Beccuau, the man is known to the police for two incidents.
According to the public prosecutor’s office, the suspect had only recently been released from custody under judicial supervision. Last year he attacked a migrant camp and injured several people. According to media reports, he attacked with a saber. In 2016 he is said to have attacked a person with a knife.
What was the motive of the alleged perpetrator?
“He obviously wanted to attack foreigners,” said France’s Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin about the alleged perpetrator. However, it is unclear whether the attack was explicitly aimed at Kurds. The suspect was not recorded as a right-wing extremist by the security authorities, but a right-wing background to the crime is being checked.
According to investigators, the alleged perpetrator himself admitted to having a racist motive. The 69-year-old told a police officer when he was arrested that he had acted because he was “racist”.
Mayor Anne Hidalgo also speaks of a right-wing extremist. “The Kurdish community, and through it all Parisians, have been targeted by these killings, committed by a far-right activist,” Hidalgo wrote on Twitter.
How are the security authorities reacting?
Even if it is not yet clear whether the attack was explicitly aimed at the Kurdish community, France now wants to protect Kurdish meeting places. Throughout the country, guards should be posted at gathering places of the Kurdish community. Darmanin also wanted to check whether there were other threats against Kurds in France. The interior minister also announced that he would also protect Turkish diplomatic missions in the country to prevent counterattacks.
Emmanuel Grégoire, who works for the Paris mayor, wrote on Twitter about a medical-psychological emergency room that had been set up in the city hall. It is intended for people who have observed the incident or are otherwise affected.
How is the Kurdish community reacting?
On Friday afternoon, numerous Kurds gathered near the site of the attack. Shortly after Interior Minister Darmanin’s visit to the site, there were clashes with the security forces. Media reported that demonstrators had thrown at the police. They used tear gas. The France Info station wrote of an arrest and five injured police officers.
The Democratic Kurdish Council in France (CDK-F), the umbrella organization of 24 Kurdish associations, rated the alleged perpetrator’s attack as a “terrorist attack”, which came about after numerous Turkish threats. The dead and injured are Kurdish activists. Turkey has long fought Kurdish independence aspirations promoted by the banned Kurdish Workers’ Party PKK and other Kurdish organizations.
Kurds also gathered in Paris for a demonstration on Saturday. According to the Kurdish umbrella organization Kurdish Democratic Council, thousands of participants are said to have gathered on the Place de la République. The police initially gave no information on the number of participants.
During the demonstration, there were renewed clashes with the police. Video footage from the AP news agency shows objects being thrown in the direction of the emergency services. The police used tear gas.