Two days after the death of Dominique Bernard in a terrorist attack in a high school in Arras, a tribute brought together some 5,000 people, Sunday October 15, in front of the town hall of Arras, on the Place des Héros, to pay tribute to the teacher. The city’s sirens sounded for several minutes. “We are all gathered, united, standing, for Dominique Bernard, for his family, for his children”declared Mayor Frédéric Leturque during this tribute. “There are no words to describe this barbaric act, there are no words to ease the pain”, he added. Follow our live stream.
Gérald Darmanin denies any “fault in the intelligence services”. The main suspect in the attack, Mohammed M., file S, had been followed since this summer by the General Directorate of Internal Security (DGSI). She had arrested him the day before the incident “to check if he didn’t have a weapon” and control his phone, according to the Minister of the Interior, who on Saturday excluded a “failure of the intelligence services”. “We cannot follow everyone who is suspected.”for his part reacted on Sunday Eric Dupond-Moretti. “The S file is a working tool for intelligence. The S file is not condemned”recalled the Minister of Justice on the set of the program “Political Questions”.
Eleven people placed in police custody. An eleventh person was taken into custody on Saturday as part of the investigation into this attack, franceinfo learned from a source close to the matter. The main suspect, Mohamed M., continues to remain silent.
A time of contemplation will be organized on Monday. Classes will be canceled in middle and high schools on Monday, between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m., to allow time for discussion between teachers, the Minister of National Education, Gabriel Attal, announced on Saturday in a document sent to the educational community and consulted by franceinfo. “You need to get together, to discuss, to prepare as best as possible for the return of the students”, he wrote, adding that a minute of silence will take place at 2 p.m. In primary school, the exchange between teachers will take place during the mid-day break, before a time of tribute which must “take into account the age of the students”.