Situation Report: Jihad Returns to France
A low angle shot of an anti-terrorism barrier in front of the Eiffel Tower in Paris France
France and the West received yet another gruesome reminder of the continuing threat of jihadist terrorism.
According to media reports a French middle school history and geography teacher who had allegedly displayed cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed was beheaded by an assailant yelling allahu akbar (god is greater) in the middle of a street in the suburbs 16 miles outside of Paris.
The terrorist fled but was shot and killed by police 2 miles from the scene.
Al Qaeda has recently issued threats about displaying Mohammed, particularly the cartoons originally published by the magazine Charlie Hebdo. In 2015 jihadis affiliated with Al Qaeda and the Islamic State attacked the offices of that magazine killing employees, bystanders and police officers. While the assailants were killed, several alleged conspirators to the attack are currently on trial for their role.
More recently, in September, a knife-wielding jihadist from Pakistan attacked two people outside the offices where Charlie Hebdo had previously been headquartered. Charlie Hebdo now publishes from an undisclosed location. The magazine had recently republished its cartoons of Mohammed to exercise the Western-wide right of free expression.
There are reports that the attacker in today’s assault was wearing an explosive vest although the use of fake explosive vests in order complicate police response and subdue victims has become increasingly common in Europe.
The magazine “Le Parisien” reports that today’s victim recently gave his class a lesson on free expression in which he showed the Charlie Hebdo Mohammed cartoons. The unconfirmed report indicates an irate parent subsequently attacked the teacher and beheaded him.
If this is the case, it would be yet again more confirmation of France’s continued struggle to address unassimilated Muslim migrants who reside in France. France’s President Emmanuel
Macron recently called for reintegrating French Muslims, and demanded they adhere to French values and end what Macron calls “Islamic Separatism.”
Jihad stabbings remain fairly common in France and are rarely reported on outside of local French media.
This terrible incident serves as a reminder that jihadists will continue to use violence in order to target the expression of free speech and free expression. Shamefully the overwhelming majority of Western media chose to appease jihadists by refusing to publish anything offensive to Islam. Had the media banded together in 2015 to stand by Charlie Hebdo, perhaps that magazine would not have a continued bullseye on the back of its office and personnel.
