Samuel Case, FISM News
Days after French history teacher, Samuel Patty, was beheaded by an Islamist assailant for showing caricatures of Mohammad in his class, French police began conducting investigations into association and individuals suspected of holding Islamist beliefs. Public figures called the murder on assault on the French Republic and its values. The killer was shot and killed by law enforcement, and police detained 11 people associated with the terror attack.
Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said some 80 investigations were being conducted into online hate activity, and he is looking into whether to disband about 50 Muslim associations. According to a police source, France is preparing to deport over 200 individuals on the government watchlist, of which about 150 are in jail. These deportations were already in the works before the assassination.
Over the weekend, thousands gathered to honor teachers and defend freedom of expression. Prime Minister Jean Castex was among those to join in the show of solidarity. “You don’t scare us. We are not afraid. You will not divide us. We are in France!” Catex said in a tweet. French President Emmanuel Macron has also decried the murder as an “Islamist terror attack.”
Sourced from Reuters American Wire and the AP