The Assassin of Arras
A man stabs a teacher in France. Then it turns out: He did it in the name of the Islamic State
A police officer stands in front of the high school in Arras, France, where a man stabbed a teacher
© Michel Spingler / AP / DPA
Mohammed M. came to France as a child. His parents’ asylum applications were rejected and his radical father was deported. Mohammed M. became a threat.
Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin had previously stated that there was a connection between the attack at the high school in Arras, northern France, and the conflict in Israel and the Palestinian territories.
Mohammed M. is to be brought before the examining judge on Tuesday. Police sources said he had remained silent during the interrogation. The public prosecutor’s office wanted to provide information about the status of the investigation in the afternoon.
Several other suspects are also brought before the judge, including two of his brothers. His older brother is currently in custody. He was sentenced to five years in prison this year because he knew about an attack plan near the Elysee Palace. He was also convicted of glorifying terrorism. His 17-year-old younger brother was arrested at another school on the day of the attack.
Mohammed M. radicalized in France
His sister and mother have since been released from police custody. The sister was deeply shocked by her brothers’ actions, said their lawyer Mikaël Benillouche. She observed how Mohammed M. became more and more radical and behaved violently.
On Monday, schools in France held a minute’s silence to commemorate the two teachers murdered by Islamist-motivated attackers: The French teacher Dominique Bernard was stabbed to death in front of the entrance to his school in Arras on Friday. Three years ago, the teacher Samuel Paty was also killed by a jihadist in the Paris suburb of Conflans-Sainte-Honorine.
Assassin of Arras known as a threat
Mohammed M. came to France with his family from the Russian Republic of Ingushetia at the age of six. The French authorities had rejected several of the family’s asylum applications and deported the father, who was considered radicalized. Mohammed M. could not be deported because he was younger than 13 when he came to France.
Mohammed M. was registered as a threat and was observed by the secret service. However, there was no evidence of an impending act, according to intelligence circles. The highest terror alert level has been in effect in France since Friday. Jewish institutions and schools are under increased security. Up to 7,000 soldiers are deployed across the country.