France: accused of killing of three Kurds in Paris admits his ‘pathological hatred’ of foreigners

The French pensioner suspected of killing three Kurds on Friday In Paris, he first went to a small town on the outskirts of the capital to “assassinate migrants”, driven by a “pathological hatred”, the public prosecutor’s office announced this Sunday.

The 69 year old man On Saturday, he was transferred to a psychiatric ward by police.

From the attack, which caused three deaths and three injuries -already out of danger-, the crime trail prevails.

After his arrest shortly after the events, the alleged killer told the security officers he did this to be “racistDuring his arrest, the man acknowledged feeling “a hatred for foreigners that has become completely pathological” since a robbery he was the victim of in 2016, Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said in a statement.

Hate

The suspect described himself as “depressive” and “suicidal,” he added. She also assured him “always” he had wanted to “murder migrants, foreigners by theft“.

On Friday morning, he went to the small town of Saint-Denis, in the northern suburbs of Paris, with a weapon, “an 11.43-caliber Colt 45 automatic pistol”.

Finally, “he resigned (…) because there were few people and because of the clothes he was wearing, which prevented him from easily reloading his weapon”, specified the judicial institution.

He returned to his parents’ house, left and headed just before noon to rue Enghien, in the central 10th arrondissement of Paris, where I learned of the existence of a Kurdish cultural centerand opened fire.

Emine Kara, a leader of the Kurdish Women’s Movement in France, and two men, one of them artist and political refugee Mir Perwer, were killed. Three other men were injured, one of them seriously, but his life is not in danger, while another has left the hospital, according to the latest report released this Sunday by the prosecutor’s office.

Five of the six victims were Turkish nationals; the other, French.

No extremist links

According to the prosecutor, the alleged killer pointed out “with resentment ‘all migrants'”, and explained that he had “attacked victims he did not know”, especially Kurds. “for being prisoners in their fight against Daesh (Arabic acronym for the jihadist organization Islamic State) instead of killing them”.

The suspect had “intended to use all weapons and kill himself with the last bullet” but was stopped by several people at a hairdresser’s before being arrested by police.

The first elements obtained during a search at his parents’ home, including a computer and a mobile phone, did not allow to establish “no ties to any extremist ideology”according to the prosecutor.

The alleged killer said he bought the gun four years ago from a member of the shooting club to which it belonged. He hid it at his parents’ house and claimed he had never used it before.

Already sentenced in 2017 for carrying prohibited weapons and last June for using against thieves, was indicted in December 2021 for assault, premeditated and racist in nature.

He is suspected of stabbing a migrant in a camp in Paris on December 8, 2021.

After a year of provisional detention, was released on December 12, 2022.

Friday’s attack caused a great shock in the Kurdish community, which he denounced a “terrorist” act and blamed Turkey.

“The fact that our associations are being attacked is of a terrorist and political nature,” said Agit Polat, CDK-F spokesman.

In Parisseveral thousand people protested in a demonstration which ended in violent incidents.

An adviser to the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, condemned the violence that broke out in the French capital after the attack on Sunday and accused the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) of it. “This is the PKK in France,” Ibrahim Kalin said, posting photos of overturned and burnt cars.

AFP agency

pp