Absence Disciplinary Action and "Protesting Teacher Who Disparages Islam" - Lies to Father
Angry Father Reveals Teacher's Information, Provoking Extremists
Youth Interested in IS Beheads and Kills Teacher
Flowers commemorating Samuel Paty, a history teacher killed by an Islamic extremist, are placed at the Coll?ge du Bois d'Aulne near Paris on October 17 last year.
[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-ju] It has been revealed that the starting point of the teacher beheading terror attack that shocked France last year was a lie told by a 13-year-old student.
According to local media on the 8th (local time), the female student known as 'Z' confessed during an investigation by authorities that she "lied" about history teacher Samuel Paty, who was killed by an Islamic extremist. She falsely claimed that she protested when the teacher tried to show Islamic satirical cartoons and was excluded from the class, but in fact, Z had never attended that class.
As a result, Paty, who worked as a history teacher at a middle school in Conflans-Sainte-Honorine, a suburb of Paris, became a target of an Islamic extremist and was found beheaded on the 16th of the same month. The suspect who killed Paty reportedly shouted "God is great," a verse from the Quran (the Islamic holy book), at the crime scene, and was shot dead by police while resisting arrest during his escape.
Islamic satire cartoon by Charlie Hebdo displayed on a building in Montpellier, France, on October 21 last year.
In fact, Z's lie was to hide the real reason she was excluded from the class from her father.
According to the reconstruction of the case based on investigation details by French local media, on October 5th last year, Paty explained freedom of expression during class and mentioned the 2015 incident in which 12 people died in a shooting attack at the editorial office of the French weekly Charlie Hebdo, which published satirical cartoons of Muhammad, the founder of Islam, and the Muslim brothers Said and Cherif who carried out the attack. According to other students' testimonies, Paty said in the next day's class, "I will show these cartoons, but Muslim students may be shocked, so they can close their eyes or leave the classroom."
Z was excluded from class due to "frequent absences," so she did not attend the class on the 6th when Paty showed the cartoons. However, to hide the real reason for her exclusion, Z lied to her Moroccan-born father, Ibrahim Knina (48), saying, "Just before Paty showed the cartoons, he told Muslim students to leave the classroom, and I protested against him and was excluded from the class for two days."
After hearing Z's words, her father Knina became angry and posted Paty's name and the school's address on Facebook, criticizing him. He went to the school to protest and also filed a complaint at the police station. Abdulla Anzorov, an 18-year-old from Chechnya who had shown interest in the Islamic State (IS), an Islamic extremist armed group, saw the father's post and planned the crime. Eventually, Paty was beheaded on a street near the school by a young man he had never met.
Local media reported, "The tragedy that followed is related to Z's bad behavior."
Z remained silent but admitted to lying only after hearing that other students told the police, "Z was not in the class. Z's claims about Paty were different from the truth." The police reportedly said, "Z was suffering from inferiority complex and was devoted to her father."
Z's lawyer argued, "The responsibility for this tragedy should not be placed on a 13-year-old girl," adding, "The father's excessive actions, who posted videos criticizing the teacher, caused this situation. Although Z lied, even if it were true, the father's reaction was still excessive."
Father Knina told authorities, "I was foolish," and said, "I never thought a terrorist would see my message. I did not want anyone to get hurt. It was hard to imagine that a history teacher would die and I would receive all the blame."
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