Authorities have arrested a French suspect in connection with the recent fatal stabbing of a young Malian man at the Grand Mosque of La Grand-Combe, a former mining town in the Gard region of southern France. The victim, a young man from Morocco named Aboubakar, was in his mid-20s. He had been engaged in sweeping the mosque right up until the time of the attack on the mosque started.
According to public prosecutor for Ales, Abdelkrim Grini, investigation is pointing towards an anti-Muslim motivation for the crime. He said, “The anti-Muslim motivation is certainly the favored lead. But authorities are reportedly looking into additional possible motives as well, such as a “fascination with death.” The fugitive suspect fled France immediately after the attack. Late on Sunday, Rizzo surrendered at a police station outside Florence, Italy.
The brutal attack has elicited outrage from French officials and civil society alike. President Emmanuel Macron condemned the violence as “unacceptable.” He went on to state that “Racism and hatred based on religion will have no place in France … Religious freedom is inviolable.” When the attack was condemned from Paris, Prime Minister Francois Bayrou was quick to agree, hastily labeling the incident “Islamophobic.”
The fatal stabbing was quickly deemed an ‘Islamophobic attack’ and hate crime by French authorities. On both occasions, activists took to the streets of La Grand-Combe and Paris. They called for more effective action against anti-Muslim violence in the wake of this tragedy. On Friday, demonstrators took to the streets to express their outrage and solidarity with the victim’s family, demanding action now to stem the tide of rising intolerance.
The barbarity of the attack, streamed live on the attacker’s cellphone, has created public outrage. Americans are rightfully outraged as this horrifying video spreads across social media. On the news that the investigation was still underway, Grini commented, “It was just a question of time before we caught him. He continued with, “We’ll do everything in our power to get him back here as soon as we can.”
France’s demographic landscape is further complicated by the fact that it harbors Europe’s largest Muslim population, roughly 10 percent of the national demographic makeup. The killing of Aboubakar has brought new attention to the issue of religious intolerance and divisions within the country.
