Millions of people, including a host of world leaders, are expected to march in Paris Sunday in an unparalleled show of solidarity with the people of France following a three-day spree of terrorist violence.
British Prime Minister David Cameron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas are slated to take part along with the king and queen of Jordan. The United States will be represented by Attorney General Eric Holder.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said Sunday no act of terror would halt “the march of freedom.” The top U.S. diplomat, speaking in India, said “we stand together” with the people of France “not just in anger and outrage, but in solidarity and commitment in confronting extremists.”
More than 700,000 people marched in silence in cities across France Saturday in a massive show of support for the 17 victims of the country’s worst terror violence in more than a half century.
French Prime Minister Manuel Valls, speaking Saturday to mourners near a kosher supermarket where a gunman killed four hostages, said: “I have no doubt that millions of citizens will come to express their love of liberty.” He went on to say that “France without Jews is no longer France.”
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu said Sunday in Israel before leaving for Paris that he would convene a special ministerial team to increase Jewish immigration to Israel from France and the rest of Europe, adding “the state of Israel is not only the place you pray for, the state of Israel is also your home.”
Security is expected to remain tight across the nation for weeks as investigators continue their hunt for the girlfriend of one of three gunmen killed Friday as the two hostage dramas riveted television viewers across the world.
Police originally suspected that 26-year-old Hayat, described as armed and dangerous, was at the supermarket when her partner, Amedy Coulibaly, killed four hostages before being shot dead by security forces. But Turkish officials quoted Saturday say the woman entered Turkey January 2 and is now likely in Syria.
Boumeddiene has been pictured in the past wearing traditional female Islamic clothing and shooting a crossbow.
Amedy Coulibaly was an associate of brothers Cherif and Said Kouachi. The siblings – killed in a separate shootout Friday – have been identified as perpetrators of Wednesday’s attack on the staff of the satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo. The publication had gained recognition for creating and publishing cartoons lampooning the Islamic Prophet Muhammad. Twelve people, including eight journalists and two police officers, were killed in that rampage.
As security forces closed in on the brothers Friday outside Paris, Said Kouachi told reporters by phone that he received training and financing from al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, or AQAP. He mentioned his ties to Anwar al-Awlaki, a U.S.-born cleric who by 2011 had become a senior figure in AQAP and its public face. Awlaki was killed in September 2011 in Yemen when two U.S. Predator drones operated by the U.S. Joint Special Operations Command targeted his vehicle.
American, European and Yemeni sources confirmed that Said Kouachi trained with AQAP, which has publicly praised the attack on the offices of Charlie Hebdo. An audio recording posted on YouTube and attributed to a leader of the group said the attack was prompted by insults to the prophet Muhammad.
Police in Germany said Sunday they have detained two men suspected of an arson attack against a newspaper that republished the cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad seen in Charlie Hebdo.
Police officials did not release any details about the men, but added that no one was hurt in the attack on the Hamburger Morgenpost.
Some information for this report came from AP, AFP and Reuters.
