Paris Shooting: Mosques Urge Government Action Against Violent Extremism

Even if the anti-terrorism prosecutor’s office did not take over the case, the racist motive of the attack has nevertheless been confirmed. This is why the Council of Mosques of the Rhône (CMR) called on the State to "be intransigent with violent extremism, its causes and its underlying ideology".

"In a context of liberation of speech, we can expect anything. We have a common enemy: it is terrorism and violent extremism, wherever they come from and whoever the perpetrators are," said Kamel Kabtane, the rector of the Grand Mosque of Lyon, president of the CMR, and Azzedine Gaci, rector of the Othmane mosque in Villeurbanne, in a statement.

While presenting its condolences to the Kurdish community, the Council of Mosques of the Rhône wishes that the State’s response be made "without distinction and without hierarchy" in the face of any attack.