MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 17th October, 2020) The beheading of a history teacher near Paris on Friday is an attack against France, education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer said.
Earlier in the day, media reported that a man was decapitated in the Conflans-Sainte-Honorine commune north of Paris. A suspect was later killed by the French police, and the counter-terrorism department of the prosecutor's office is investigating the incident. The victim reportedly taught freedom of speech and showed cartoons depicting Islamic prophet Muhammad to his students.
"Tonight the [French] republic was attacked with the heinous murder of one of its servants, a teacher. Tonight I think about him, about his family. Our unity and solidarity are the only answers to the cruelty of Islamic terrorism. We will fight back," Blanquer tweeted.
According to sources cited by the BFMTV broadcaster, the attacker was 18 years old and could have been born in Moscow. There is no official confirmation of this information.
The attacker reportedly did not appear on the lists of radicals or wanted persons.
BFMTV also reported that French President Emmanuel Macron, Blanquer, and several other high-ranking officials have arrived at the site of the incident.
