France Pays Tribute to Victims of Jihadist Attack

Hundreds of mourners packed a church in a rural French town rocked by a deadly Islamist attack for a Sunday service in tribute to the victims, who included …

Hundreds of mourners packed a church in a rural French town rocked by a deadly Islamist attack for a Sunday service in tribute to the victims, who included a policeman hailed as a hero for offering himself in place of a hostage, AFP reported.

Lieutenant-Colonel Arnaud Beltrame, 44, was shot and stabbed after taking the place of a woman whom Radouane Lakdim had been using as a human shield during his attack Friday at a supermarket in the town of Trebes.

The sleepy town of 6,000, located on the picturesque Canal du Midi, is just eight kilometres (five miles) from the famed medieval walled city of Carcassonne, where a silent march is planned next Saturday, the eve of Easter Day.

The bishop of Carcassonne and Narbonne celebrated the mass in Trebes’ Saint-Etienne Church to honour the four killed and three wounded in the attack claimed by the Islamic State group.

Representatives from the Muslim community attended the mass.

“Your presence tells us that the creators of hatred will not win,” Bishop Alain Planet told them in his homily.

“Now is the time only for prayer and compassion,” he said. “May such events help us find the strength to build a society in which they will no longer be possible.”

Leaving the 14th-century church, Carcassonne imam Mohamed Belmihoub told reporters: “The (Muslim) community has been stabbed, Islam itself has been stabbed... by people who use symbols that are dear to our hearts.”

After the mass, which had an overflow crowd listening through loudspeakers outside, pensioner Emile Acco said: “I am very sad. All of France is unhappy. We want this to end.”

A national tribute will be held at a later date for Beltrame, who President Emmanuel Macron said had “died a hero” and deserved “the respect and admiration of the whole nation”.

Following the worst jihadist attack of his presidency, Macron has called a meeting later this week of the security services monitoring individuals suspected of radicalisation.