“We saw an old white man enter, then start shooting,” a witness told Agence France-Presse.
Officials described the suspect, who was being treated for face injuries after his arrest Friday, as a 69-year-old French citizen who had previously been charged with racially motivated violence in a sword attack on a tent encampment housing migrants. He was released from prison two weeks ago, and is now being investigated for “assassination,” “attempted assassination” and “intentional violence with weapons.”
Prosecutor Laure Beccuau told reporters she saw no reason to have counterterrorism prosecutors take over the investigation, a move called for by some left-wing politicians. Attacks similar in scope carried out by Islamist extremists have been investigated as terrorist attacks.
“The Kurds of France have been the target of a heinous attack in the heart of Paris,” French President Emmanuel Macron tweeted Friday evening. “Thoughts to the victims, to the people who are fighting to survive, to their families and loved ones.”
Earlier in the day, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin had cautioned that it was too early to conclude that the attacker deliberately targeted Kurds, as opposed to foreigners in general.
Speaking near the scene of the shooting, Darmanin said the suspect was not known to have been an active member of right-wing extremist groups. He was known to practice at shooting ranges.
One of the three people wounded in Friday’s shooting is in critical condition, Darmanin said.
Local officials urged residents to stay away from the area of the attack. But by Friday afternoon local time, large crowds had assembled in nearby streets to mourn the victims. Skirmishes broke out between police officers and members of the Kurdish community, who shouted slogans decrying the Turkish government and blaming French officials for having failed to protect them.
During his visit, Darmanin said Kurdish organizations and Turkish diplomatic premises would receive additional police protection.
Kurdish organizations called for a large demonstration in Paris on Saturday.
Friday’s shooting comes almost 10 years after three female Kurdish activists were killed in a shooting at a different community center in Paris. Many members of the Kurdish community in Paris have long suspected that Turkish intelligence services were behind that attack.
“Kurds, wherever they reside, must be able to live in peace and security,” said Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo, adding that “more than ever, Paris is by their side in these dark times.”
