France has endured an appalling series of Islamist terror attacks in recent years. One might feel a sense of relief that the country escaped relatively lightly last Friday. That will, of course, be no consolation to the family of the man who was killed by 22-year-old Nathan C, a recent convert to Islam, who stabbed his victim to death as he defended his wife in the Parisian suburb of Villejuif.
She is recovering in hospital, as is another woman, while a passer-by apparently has his religion to thank for his survival. Confronted by the killer who was dressed in a djellaba and shouting ‘Allah Akbar’, the man pleaded for mercy, pointing out that he was a Muslim. The terrorist ordered him to recite a prayer in Arabic, which he did, and so off he went in search of other victims.
Some media outlets have cautioned that the perpetrator, who was shot dead by police and whose surname hasn’t been disclosed, had a history of mental illness. But arguably of greater relevance is his apparent adherence to the ultra-conservative Salafism, the ideology that links many of France’s Islamist terrorists. [The Spectator] Read more
