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Québec City mosque shooting: man charged with six counts of murder Québec City mosque shooting: man charged with six counts of murder
(35 minutes later)
A 27-year-old man has been charged with six counts of first-degree murder over a shooting at a Québec City mosque during evening prayers which Canada’s prime minister called an act of terrorism against Muslims. A 27-year-old university student has been charged with six counts of first-degree murder over a shooting at a Québec City mosque during evening prayers, in what the Canadian prime minister described as an act of terror.
Alexandre Bissonnette was also charged with five counts of attempted murder in connection with the shooting at the mosque late on Sunday. Alexandre Bissonnette, a student in the social sciences faculty at Laval University, is also facing five charges of attempted murder.
The victims were identified on Monday as Mamadou Tanou Barry, 42; Abdelkrim Hassane, 41; Khaled Belkacemi, 60; Aboubaker Thabti, 44; Azzeddine Soufiane, 57; and Ibrahima Barry, 39. A local group dedicated to welcoming refugees, Bienvenu aux réfugiés, said Bissonnette’s name was familiar to them and that he had expressed support for Marine Le Pen, the leader of France’s far-right Front National.
Five survivors were still in critical condition and 12 others suffered minor injuries, Genevieve Dupuis, a spokeswoman for the University of Quebec Hospital Centre, said on Monday. The dead ranged in age from 35 to 65. In a Facebook post, the group said that Bissonnette was “unfortunately known by several miliants in Québec City for his viewpoints that were pro-LePen and anti-feminist, as expressed in social media and at the Université Laval”.
Speaking in parliament, the prime minister, Justin Trudeau, said that the victims had been targeted simply because of their religion and spoke directly to the more than 1 million Muslims who live in Canada, saying: “We are with you.” The charges came hours after the attack at the Québec City Islamic cultural center, also known as the Grande Mosquée de Québec, during evening prayers. Six people were killed and another 19 injured.
“Thirty-six million hearts are breaking with yours,” Trudeau said. “Know that we value you.” Five people remain in critical condition in hospital.
Police initially said that two men had been arrested after the attack. But later in the day, provincial police clarified that only one was a suspect and they had released the other – considered to be a witness – without charges.
The brazen attack left the tight-knit Muslim community in Québec city reeling. Many had been awake all night waiting for details on the shooting to trickle in. “I can’t express the grief that has touched our community,” said Mohamed Labidi, a spokesman for the Quebec City Islamic cultural center. “This tragedy occurred in a place of prayer, with people who were praying.”
Through tears he added: “It’s a very, very big tragedy for us. We have a sadness we cannot express.”
On Monday, the names and identities of the six people killed in the attack began to emerge. All of them were fathers.
Azzedine Soufiane, 57, a grocer and father of three, was well-known in the community and beloved for the time he spent helping newcomers adjust to the city.
Khaled Belkacemi, 60, was a professor in the food science department at Laval University. “Our university community is in mourning today,” rector Denis Briere said in a statement. “We mourn the death of an esteemed member of the faculty and the university, a devoted and beloved man of his colleagues and students.”
Also among those killed was Abdelkrim Hassane, 41, an information technology worker for the government and father of three, as well as Aboubaker Thabti, 44, a Tunisian-born father of two.
Two brothers from Guinea, Mamadou Tanou Barry, 42, and Ibrahima Barry, 39, were also killed, leaving behind two and four children respectively.
The attack shocked many in this quiet city, home to just over 500,000 people. Violence is rare here – in 2015, the city reported just two murders.
“Québec Muslims are frightened right now,” said Haroun Bouazzi, president of the AMAL-Quebec, a human rights group based in Montreal. “We are urgently waiting for answers as to how and why such a tragedy could occur.”
Justin Trudeau, Canada’s prime minister, condemned the attack on Monday. “Make no mistake, this was a terrorist attack. This was a group of innocents targeted for practicing their faith,” he said. “To the more than 1 million Canadians who profess the Muslim faith, I want to say directly, we are with you 36 million hearts are breaking with yours.”
He urged Canadians to stand in solidarity with those affected by the attack. “We will grieve with you, we will defend you, we will love you and we will stand with you.”
Phillippe Couillard, the premier of Québec, described Sunday’s shooting as a “murderous act directed at a specific community” and also expressed his solidarity with Muslims in Québec. “Québec categorically rejects this barbaric violence.” Security had been increased at mosques across the province, he added.
Vigils were planned across the country, while people around the world used social media to express their condolences and voice their support for the mosque.