(Reuters) Paris – Kurdish community representatives gathered in the heart of Paris on Saturday to protest and demand an explanation for the assassination of three Kurds in the nation’s capital, which they claim has revealed the vulnerability of their group.
In a popular area of Paris’ 10th district, a shooter killed two people on Friday at a Kurdish cultural center and a neighboring cafe.
Police detained a 69-year-old man who was recently released from custody while awaiting trial for a sabre assault on a migrant camp in Paris one year prior, according to the authorities.
The Kurdish Democratic Council in France (CDK-F) announced on its website and social media channels that a gathering would begin at noon (1100 GMT) on Saturday in Republic square, a popular location for protests in the city, following a Friday afternoon altercation between a mob and police.
The square was filled with several hundred individuals, and many of them were carrying flags.
The probe may look into potential racial motivations, Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said on Friday, but Kurdish groups argued it should be treated as a terrorist act.
The killings on Friday particularly shocked the Kurdish community, which was gearing up to mark the tenth anniversary of the murders of three Kurdish women in Paris.
