Suspect in attack on French synagogue charged with terrorism – Technologist

Four days after the arson attack on the Beth Yaacov synagogue in southern France, the main suspect, El Hussein K., 33, was charged on Wednesday, August 28, for “terrorist conspiracy,” “attempted assassinations committed due to race or religion in connection to a terrorist organization,” “possession and transport of incendiary products with the intent to harm people” and “violence against police officers, aggravated by the use of a weapon.” He has been placed in pre-trial detention. The investigating judge’s decision is in line with the recommendations of the National Anti-Terrorist Prosecutor’s Office (PNAT), which had announced earlier in the day that it was opening a judicial investigation.

Another man, who was allegedly aware of El Hussein K.’s plans and suspected of being his accomplice, was also charged with “terrorist conspiracy” and jailed. A third person, who had driven El Hussein K. on Saturday, August 24, after his attack, between Le Grau-du-Roi and Nîmes (both in southern France), was indicted for “concealment of a terrorist criminal” and placed under judicial supervision.

The ongoing investigation and police custody hearings of El Hussein K., which began on Monday, have revealed a little more about his background and path to radicalization. Born in Blida, Algeria, he arrived in France via Spain in 2016. He had a child with a French national in 2019, making him legally entitled to a residence permit application. He has no job or income and has been living in an apartment in Nîmes.

“From various hearings and his publications on social media, it appears that EHK has been radicalized in the practice of his religion for several months, and also nurtures a long-standing hatred of Jews, more specifically focused on the situation in Palestine,” said PNAT. In late 2023, on his Facebook account (which has since been deleted), he posted an image of a lion draped in a Palestinian flag and holding a rat wearing an Israeli flag in its mouth. PNAT added in its statement, “He has finally told some of his relatives of his intention to go and fight in Gaza.”

Convicted of minor offenses such as driving without a license or insurance and using narcotics, he was “unknown to the anti-terrorism services, nor to foreign services,” said Gérald Darmanin, the outgoing interior minister, on Sunday. He said that the DGSI [General Directorate of Internal Security] has no information saying that “an outside organization would have asked him to carry out the act.”

Well-prepared

The attack on the Beth Yaacov synagogue was well-prepared. Investigations revealed that El Hussein K. had purchased a handgun in the weeks leading up to the attack. He also had researched the region’s synagogues, Jewish holidays and Shabbat celebrations before targeting La Grande-Motte synagogue.

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