Hundreds of thousands of people joined by world leaders flooded Paris yesterday in a historic show of defiance and solidarity against terrorism following last week’s extremist attacks in the French capital.
As France mourned 17 victims of three days of bloodshed, among them Jews and a Muslim police officer, the leaders of Israel and the Palestinian Authority were among those attending the mass rally in Paris.
Under blue skies, emotions were running high in the shell-shocked City of Light, with many of those gathering from all walks of life already in tears as they came together under the banner of freedom of speech and liberty.
Photo: AFP
The families of those who died in the shootings that shook the country to its core were to be at the very front of the march, leading royalty and heads of state.
Security was beefed up for the ceremony, with police snipers stationed on rooftops and plainclothes officers among the crowd in a city still reeling from the extremist attacks that left 12 staff and policemen dead at the office of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo and claimed four lives at a Jewish supermarket. A policewoman was also killed.
“Today, Paris is the capital of the world,” French President Francois Hollande said. “The entire country will rise up.”
“I have no doubt that millions of citizens will come to express their love of liberty, their love of fraternity,” French Prime Minister Manuel Valls told a poignant rally on Saturday near where a gunman killed four hostages at the kosher store.
In a preview of yesterday’s demonstration, more than 700,000 people poured onto the streets of cities across France on Saturday, many carrying banners reading: “Je suis Charlie” (I am Charlie), the tribute to Charlie Hebdo that has been the global rallying point in the wake of the slaughter.
Many brandished pens to symbolize freedom of expression after the magazine was targeted by brothers Said and Cherif Kouachi for publishing cartoons lampooning the Prophet Mohammed.
Along with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, the king and queen of Jordan were to be present alongside a host of top European leaders, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel and British Prime Minister David Cameron.
US President Barack Obama was represented by US Attorney General Eric Holder, who took part in an emergency meeting of European interior ministers to discuss the threats from Islamic extremism.
Hollande, who led the tributes to the victims, has warned his grieving country not to drop its guard in the face of possible new attacks.
Wednesday’s attack on the Charlie Hebdo offices was the first act in France’s worst terrorist attacks in decades.
The Kouachi brothers methodically massacred 12 people and then led police on a two-day long chase, before they were then cornered at a printing house near Charles de Gaulle Airport on Friday. Separately, Amedy Coulibaly shot a policewoman to death and attacked the Paris kosher market, threatening more violence unless the police let the Kouachis go.
It all ended at dusk on Friday with near-simultaneous raids at the printing plant and the market that left all three gunmen dead.
Investigators are now trying to hunt down Coulibaly’s partner, 26-year-old Hayat Boumeddiene, who was initially suspected of having a role in the policewoman’s killing.
After she was described as “armed and dangerous” and on the loose in Paris, a Turkish security source told reporters that Boumeddiene had arrived in Turkey on Jan. 2 and had since likely traveled on to Syria.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-Wong tomorrow, which it said would possibly make landfall near central Taiwan. As of 2am yesterday, Fung-Wong was about 1,760km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, moving west-northwest at 26kph. It is forecast to reach Luzon in the northern Philippines by tomorrow, the CWA said. After entering the South China Sea, Typhoon Fung-Wong is likely to turn northward toward Taiwan, CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張峻堯) said, adding that it would likely make landfall near central Taiwan. The CWA expects to issue a land
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it is expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong this afternoon and a land warning tomorrow. As of 1pm, the storm was about 1,070km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, and was moving west-northwest at 28 to 32kph, according to CWA data. The storm had a radius of 250km, with maximum sustained winds of 173kph and gusts reaching 209kph, the CWA added. The storm is forecast to pass near Luzon in the Philippines before entering the South China Sea and potentially turning northward toward Taiwan, the CWA said. CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張峻堯) said
PREPARATION: Ferry lines and flights were canceled ahead of only the second storm to hit the nation in November, while many areas canceled classes and work Authorities yesterday evacuated more than 3,000 people ahead of approaching Tropical Storm Fung-wong, which is expected to make landfall between Kaohsiung and Pingtung County this evening. Fung-wong was yesterday morning downgraded from a typhoon to a tropical storm as it approached the nation’s southwest coast, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, as it issued a land alert for the storm. The alert applies to residents in Tainan, Kaohsiung, Pingtung and Taitung counties, and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春). As of press time last night, Taichung, Tainan, Kaohsiung, and Yilan, Miaoli, Changhua, Yunlin, Pingtung and Penghu counties, as well as Chiayi city and county had
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday issued a sea alert for Typhoon Fung-wong (鳳凰) as it threatened vessels operating in waters off the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島), the Bashi Channel and south of the Taiwan Strait. A land alert is expected to be announced some time between late last night and early this morning, the CWA said. As of press time last night, Taoyuan, as well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties had declared today a typhoon day, canceling work and classes. Except for a few select districts in Taipei and New Taipei City, all other areas and city
RSS