Twelve dead in attack on satirical newspaper in Paris

Eleven people were injured, four of them seriously, according to public prosecutor François Molins on Wednesday evening. According to French media reports, three perpetrators were identified on Wednesday evening. Their arrest was denied by the Ministry of the Interior. Among the dead are the Mohammed cartoonist and editorial director Charb, alias Stéphane Charbonnier, and his bodyguard. Charb appeared on a "wanted list" in the spring of 2013 in the Internet magazine Inspire of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). AQAP mainly carries out attacks in Yemen. According to witnesses, two black-cloaked men with Kalashnikovs broke into the editorial offices and shot around in cold blood. The terrorists shouted "Allah is great" and "We have avenged the Prophet".

"They spoke perfect French," said the illustrator Corinne Rey, who survived the attack, to the newspaper l'Humanité. They claimed to belong to the Al-Qaeda terrorist organization. The attack lasted about five minutes; she had sought cover under a desk. According to Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve, three perpetrators were involved in the attack. Their actions lead the police to conclude that they were professionally trained killers.

Hollande speaks of barbarism

French President François Hollande spoke of extraordinary barbarity. At the same time, the government declared the highest terror alert level for Paris. Numerous heads of state and government from Berlin to London, Rome, Washington and Moscow expressed their outrage and promised France their support in the search for the attackers. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon also condemned the attack. The President of the Swiss Confederation, Simonetta Sommaruga, expressed her shock on behalf of the Federal Council.

Islamic authorities condemn act

Representatives of Muslims in France also condemned the attack. The perpetrators were criminal barbarians who had sold their souls to hell, said the imam of the Drancy mosque near Paris. But clear words also came from Cairo. "This is a criminal act. Islam rejects violence of any kind," the Islamic scholars of the Al-Azhar University, which is authoritative for Sunnis - around 90 percent of all Muslims - told the Egyptian news agency Mena. And the Arab League said: "We strongly condemn the terrorist attack." The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, guardian of the holy sites in Mecca, also took a stand. The attack was a "cowardly act of terrorism that is rejected by the religion of Islam and all other religions", said a spokesman for the royal house.

The weekly newspaper Charlie Hebdo had already been the target of an arson attack in 2011 after publishing an image of the Prophet Muhammad on its front page. Depictions of Muhammad are forbidden in Islam. According to the police, the weekly magazine has received numerous threats, which is why the editorial team has been under constant police surveillance for some time.

New book provokes in France

Michel Houellebecq's new book "Submission" ("Soumission") was launched on the French market on Wednesday. It is set in a France dominated by Islam. There had been fierce protests against it from Muslims. The new issue of Charlie Hebdo, which was also published on Wednesday, discusses the book in detail. The journalists' associations of 15 major media outlets in France published a statement of solidarity on Wednesday. "We are all Charlie", declared the media people. Various solidarity and mourning rallies were held in France as well as in other countries, including Switzerland. (SDA)