Four years after the Islamist terrorist attack against the Parisian satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, French politicians have thought of the victims. Interior Minister Christophe Castaner, other department heads and Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo gathered in front of the former editorial office in the eleventh district. Head of state Emmanuel Macron announced via Twitter that the attackers had opposed freedom of expression and the French Republic. „The Republic is still there, and freedom of expression is stronger than ever.“
In January 2015, 17 people were killed in the attack on „Charlie Hebdo“, a police officer and a Jewish supermarket. The three Islamist perpetrators were shot dead by the police. The attacks ushered in an unprecedented series of terrorist attacks in France, in which around 250 people died.
After the attacks, millions of French people protested nationwide on January 11, 2015. The slogan „Je suis Charlie“ became known far beyond the borders of France.
The public prosecutor’s office had filed a lawsuit against alleged supporters of the January 2001 assassins only last month. According to it, 14 suspects are to be brought before a jury. Investigating judges still have to decide whether to comply in whole or in part. The process could begin in the coming year, according to information from the daily Le Figaro, and take around three months.
In December, the judiciary also launched a preliminary investigation into alleged jihadist Peter Cherif. The suspect is said to have had close links with Chérif and Said Kouachi, according to consistent media reports, which is accused of attacking „Charlie Hebdo“.
