France Reels After Islamophobic Attack on Mosque
Suspect surrenders in Italy after fatal assault on Malian man in southern France
By Abdullahi Yusuf
Italian police have arrested a man accused of killing a Muslim worshipper in a mosque in La Grand Combe, southern France, in what officials call an “Islamophobic attack.”
The suspect, born in 2004 with no prior criminal record, turned himself in at a Florence police station late Sunday, two days after the assault.
The victim, identified as Aboubakar, a Malian man in his 20s, was reportedly cleaning the mosque when attacked.
Security footage revealed the assailant shouting insults towards God before the attack, which he filmed and later circulated online.
French authorities launched a manhunt immediately after the incident, tracking the suspect as he fled across the border into Italy.
Abdelkrim Grini, the public prosecutor in Ales, Gard, stated, “The anti-Muslim motivation is the preferred lead,” but added that investigators are also examining other possible motives, including a “fascination with death.”
President Emmanuel Macron denounced the attack, emphasizing, “Racism and hatred based on religion will never have a place in France. Religious freedom is inviolable.”
Prime Minister Francois Bayrou labeled the act as “Islamophobic,” while the Grand Mosque of Paris condemned it as an anti-Muslim and racist crime.
Demonstrations in solidarity with the victim erupted in La Grand Combe and Paris over the weekend, with activists urging stronger measures against anti-Muslim violence.
France, home to Europe’s largest Muslim population—around 10 percent of its total—continues to grapple with rising Islamophobia.
Extradition proceedings to return the suspect to France are underway, with French authorities pledging to expedite the process.
Grini remarked, “We will do all we can to have him back as soon as possible.”
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