Mohamed Merah

11 Stories

Gunman Takes 4 Hostages in Toulouse
 Toulouse Gunman in Custody 
UPDATED

Toulouse Gunman in Custody

All 4 hostages believed to be safe

(Newser) - A self-proclaimed al-Qaeda member has been detained after taking several people hostage in a Toulouse bank today, the BBC reports. The gunman fired a shot after first demanding money; he later released two of his four hostages. French media reported he was in custody after more gunfire was heard; the...

Gutted al-Qaeda Incapable of Another 9/11: Experts

Core 'essentially gone,' but spinoff groups a concern

(Newser) - Al-Qaeda today is mostly a spent force, unable to carry out another 9/11-style attack, said US intelligence officials yesterday, reports Reuters . The mostly anonymous assessment—in a conference call led by Robert Cardillo, deputy director of US national intelligence—came one year after the killing of Osama bin Laden , with...

On Heels of Toulouse, France Nabs 19 in Raids

Round-up of suspected Islamic militants will continue, Sarkozy vows

(Newser) - French police today rounded up 19 people believed to be Islamic militants, just eight days after Mohamed Merah died after a 32-hour stand-off with authorities, reports the New York Times . Police raided homes in Paris, Toulouse, Nantes, and in the south and west of France, though they announced no direct...

Gunman's Father Suing France
 Gunman's Father Suing France 

Gunman's Father Suing France

Lawyer says Mohamed Merah's wife left him days before attacks began

(Newser) - The father of the Toulouse gunman shot dead after a 32-hour siege last week claims his son was murdered by French special forces, and is suing France. Mohamed Merah's father, who lives in Algeria, accuses the French of not following procedure in their attempt to arrest his son, the...

French Gunman Sent Video to Al-Jazeera
Al-Jazeera: We Won't Air French Gunman's Video
UPDATED

Al-Jazeera: We Won't Air French Gunman's Video

USB stick contains footage of killings, Koran readings

(Newser) - Mohamed Merah's video of his killing spree will not see the light of day, at least not by way of al-Jazeera. The network announced that the video neither provided any fresh info nor met al-Jazeera's code of ethics for broadcast. It revealed that Merah's face was never...

France Charges Merah's Brother
 France Charges 
 Merah's Brother 
UPDATED

France Charges Merah's Brother

Preliminary terrorism, murder charges filed against Abdelkader Merah

(Newser) - French prosecutors today filed preliminary murder and terrorism charges against Abdelkader Merah, the brother of Mohamed Merah, the man suspected of gunning down seven people in Toulouse last week. Abdelkader Merah, 29, has been held since Wednesday pending charges; that prosecutors have filed them indicates a strong reason that a...

Toulouse Gunman's Brother May Be Charged

Abdelkader Merah detained, may have been accomplice

(Newser) - Toulouse gunman Mohamed Merah may be dead, but French authorities are eying complicity charges for his brother, Abdelkader, reports Sky News . "Police inquiries have produced grave and matching pointers that suggest his (Abdelkader's) participation as accomplice in crimes relating to a terrorist enterprise is plausible," says a...

French Teacher Suspended for Calling Merah a 'Victim'

Students storm out of class in protest

(Newser) - France's minister of education demanded and got the "immediate suspension" of a teacher at a high school in the north of France who called for a moment of silence for killer Mohamed Merah , reports AFP . The 56-year-old English teacher described Merah as being the "victim of an...

Girlfriend to Posthumously Marry Slain French Victim

President Sarkozy gives special OK for pregnant woman

(Newser) - One of the victims killed by Mohamed Merah in France will be married posthumously to his pregnant girlfriend. Abel Chennouf, a French paratrooper, was shot dead by Merah on March 15 in the town of Menoutban. Chennouf's expecting girlfriend, Caroline Monet, received a special authorization from President Nicolas Sarkozy...

Did France Miss the Warning Signs?

PM defends intelligence service's handling of Mohamed Merah

(Newser) - France is wondering whether more could have been done to prevent Mohamed Merah's deadly series of attacks. The al-Qaeda-inspired killer—who was shot dead yesterday after a 32-hour standoff —had a violent criminal record, had been put under surveillance after trips to Afghanistan and Pakistan, and was on...

France Shooter Did Film Killings

Also: Mohamed Merah was on the US no-fly list

(Newser) - The gunman who terrorized France in recent days filmed all three of his shootings ( as suspected) and claimed to have posted them online, a French prosecutor confirmed today. Mohamed Merah, 23, filmed his alleged shootings with a camera strapped to his chest harness, the prosecutor told Sky News . In...

11 Stories