Kosher Supermarket Attacked in Paris to Reopen

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/14/world/europe/kosher-supermarket-attacked-in-paris-to-reopen.html

Version 0 of 1.

PARIS — Hyper Cacher, the kosher supermarket here that was targeted in a terrorist attack in January that left four people dead and deeply shook France’s Jews, will open its doors on Sunday, senior Jewish officials said on Friday.

The supermarket has been closed since Jan. 9, when Amedy Coulibaly, a heavily armed Frenchman, lay siege to the supermarket in Porte de Vincennes in eastern Paris, holding hostage shoppers who had come to buy supplies for the Sabbath.

Four people were killed during the attack, including Yohan Cohen 22, who worked at the supermarket, and who French news reports said died while trying to disarm Mr. Coulibaly. The police eventually stormed the supermarket, killing Mr. Coulibaly, who had declared allegiance to the Islamic State.

Since the attack, the supermarket has become a potent emblem of a hate crime that spawned national soul-searching about anti-Semitism in France and the perils of Islamic extremism, while prompting some Jews to question their future in the country. Mourners have laid flowers in front, where portraits of the four victims remain. Police officers have patrolled outside the store, whose makeshift memorial has become a destination for residents and tourists.

Robert Ejnes, executive director of the Representative Council of Jewish Institutions of France, said the reopening of the supermarket was a sign of the resilience of France’s Jews after the trauma of the attacks.

“It shows that the Jewish community in France goes on with life,” he said. “Even though we are very affected with great sorrow for the four people who died, life must go on. We want to show that whatever happens, life wins.”

Mr. Ejnes said the supermarket, newly painted white, would open on Sunday with little fanfare, in deference to its owner’s wishes to treat the opening as “just another day.” The store’s owner could not be reached for comment, though staff members at other supermarkets in the chain confirmed the opening but referred queries to the company’s headquarters.

French news reports said that the supermarket had new staff members, and noted that there was no longer any sign to indicate that it was a Jewish establishment.

Since January’s attacks, thousands of soldiers have been mobilized to protect Jewish sites in France, including synagogues and schools. On the Rue des Rosiers in the Marais district of Paris, a street peppered with Judaica shops and Jewish restaurants, clutches of armed soldiers in camouflage have become a familiar sight, providing a sense of comfort and security, but also showing how the attacks have altered daily life here.