Charlie Hebdo Connections ?: Two Journalists Injured in Paris Knife Attack

Friday, September 25, 2020

There is a knife attack near the former editorial office of the satirical magazine “Charlie Hebdo”. Two journalists are seriously injured. Two suspects can be arrested.

According to French Prime Minister Jean Castex, two journalists were injured in a knife attack in central Paris. His life is not in danger, he said near the crime scene. He did not provide further details. The Paris counter-terrorism prosecutor has launched an investigation. Two suspects were arrested.

The attack took place in the vicinity of the old newsroom of the satirical magazine “Charlie Hebdo”. In January 2015, they were among the targets of a series of attacks that lasted for several days, in which a total of 17 people died. The Al-Qaeda terror network had previously threatened the magazine with an attack due to the reissue of the Mohammed cartoons.

A man reportedly assaulted two journalists from a media agency with a knife. “The man and the woman were seriously injured,” a witness told AFP. A woman added: “The two of them smoked a cigarette in front of the building. Then I heard screams. I went to the window and saw one of my colleagues covered in blood. A man was following him with a knife,” said the woman, who wanted to remain anonymous.

The editorial team works in a secret place

In the attack on the satirical newspaper in January 2015, two Islamists cold-bloodedly murdered twelve people, including some of France’s best-known cartoonists. The trial against potential sponsors is ongoing in Paris. To mark the occasion, the satirical newspaper recently republished the controversial cartoons of Muhammad. Since the attack, the editorial team has been working under police protection in a secret location.

After the new attack, the French antiterrorist prosecutor immediately opened the investigation. According to his own statements, he is investigating for “attempted murder in connection with a terrorist act” and “formation of a criminal terrorist group.”

Top counter terrorism investigator Heitz spoke of a “main culprit.” A second person is in police custody, his connection to the main suspect is still being verified. The original suspicion of an explosive found near the crime scene was not confirmed according to police.