The accused was identified as an Algerian man, who was heard saying “Allahu akbar” and “God is great” in Arabic, during the attack.
At least one person was dead and three others injured in a knife attack near a crowded market in eastern France on Saturday. According to the French Interior Minister, the accused was identified as an Algerian man, who was an Islamic extremist with a schizophrenic profile. He was arrested after the attack.
The authorities said the national anti-terrorism prosecutor’s office has started an investigation into the matter. The attack took place in the city of Mulhouse, located in a region that borders Germany and Switzerland.
Islamist terrorism: Macron
Reacting to the incident, French President Emmanuel Macron said the government has “complete determination” to respond to the attack. He blamed it on “Islamist terrorism”. The French authorities issued a high alert for extremist threats.
The victim was a 69-year-old Portuguese man, the anti-terrorism prosecutor’s office said. The three injured included a parking control officer stabbed in the aorta and torso who remained hospitalised, Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau told reporters at the scene. The other two sustained lighter injuries.
Who is the accused?
The accused was a 37-year-old Algerian man. He was heard shouting “Allahu akbar” and “God is great” in Arabic, during the attack. According to the French Interior Minister, he was armed with a knife and screwdriver.
The suspect arrived in France without papers in 2014, and was arrested and convicted of glorifying terrorism in the wake of the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel, Retailleau said.
Police experts had “detected a schizophrenic profile” in the suspect, he added.
After several months in prison for that conviction, the suspect was confined to house arrest as authorities sought to expel him to Algeria. Retailleau lashed out at Algeria for resisting the return of criminals France is seeking to deport.
Tensions have grown in recent months between France and Algeria — which shook off French rule after a brutal war 60 years ago — over the return of Algerians accused of inciting violence or other crimes in France as well as diplomatic disputes.
Retailleau noted Islamic extremist attacks recently in Germany and other countries and said France has made “immense progress” since a wave of attacks in 2015 and 2016 linked to the Islamic State group and al-Qaida.
(With AP inputs)