Paris, Europe Brief News – Violent clashes erupted between French police and supporters of the PKK organisation in Paris after a deadly mass shooting on Friday.
Three people, all of them Kurds, have been killed after a gunman opened fire at a Kurdish cultural centre and nearby cafe in Paris, prompting clashes between police and protesters on nearby streets.
French President Emmanuel Macron described it as a “heinous” attack on France’s Kurds and said his thoughts were with the victims.
Prosecutors said they were investigating whether there was a racist motive behind the attack.
A 69-year-old man has been arrested.
🔴PARIS :#VIDEO VIOLENT CLASHES IN PARIS 10em BETWEEN THE POLICE AND KURDISH PEOPLE AFTER THE SHOOTING INCIDENT NEAR AHMET KAYA KURDISH CULTURAL CENTER
3 Kurdish people killed during shooting.#BreakingNews #Shooting #Tiroteo #Kurds #Kurdos #AhmetKaya pic.twitter.com/2xPuBz2TCr
— loveworld (@LoveWorld_Peopl) December 23, 2022
The Kurdish Democratic Council in France (CDF-K), which runs the centre that was hit, condemned the attack in a short statement. It also said there would be a vigil this evening to pay tribute to those killed.
There is no confirmed motive for the shooting, but Paris Prosecutor Laure Beccuau confirmed that the suspect had previously been charged with racist violence.
That incident – in which he attacked tents at a migrant camp in Paris with a sword – took place at Bercy on 8 December 2021. It was not clear why he had recently been released.
Le Monde newspaper quoted Ahmet-Kaya Kurdish, a spokesperson for the centre, as saying French authorities had “once more” failed to protect Kurdish people in Paris.
Local Mayor Alexandra Cordebard said the suspect was also wounded in the shooting and that three places had come under fire: the Kurdish community centre, a restaurant and a hairdresser. Two people were shot in the salon.
