French police question 8-year-old boy for pro-terror comments

PARIS, Jan 29 (KUNA) -- French police have been criticised by some human rights groups here for having questioned an eight-year-old boy for allegedly making comments in support of terrorist attacks in Paris January 5-7.
However, the police action has been defended by Education Minister Najat Vallaud-Belkacem who said the boy's school principal was right to alert social workers. Police were later called after a complaint by the school principal, who claimed he had been threatend by the boy's father.
A lawyer representing the boy's family said that he was appalled at the questioning of the minor and his father at a police station.
French courts have been handing out stiff jail terms to anyone making "an apology for" or making statements in support of the terrorists who killed 17 people here in two attacks January 5-7.
One man, who was also found to be inebriated while driving, was given a four-year jail sentence for saying he supported terrorism. A number of others have been given lighter jail terms for similar comments.
The eight-year old, however, was unable even to define terrorism when questioned, his lawyer Sefen Guez-Guez told "France 24" television, and some are saying here that the police went too far because of the young age of the child.
The boy is accused of saying that "French people should be killed" and journalists killed by terrorists on January 5 at the Charlie Hebdo magazine "deserved what they got." The Collective against Islamophopia, a group working against anti-Islamic discrimination said that the police action reflected "collective hysteria" since the attacks earlier in the month.
There has also been a massive increase in anti-Muslim attacks here since the attacks, that the Observatory for Anti-Islamism at the Muslim Council (CFCM) noted that there have been over 130 attacks here, including around 30 shootings, arsons and physical attacks against Mosques and other institutions in January.
From January 7 until January 20, there were 128 anti-Muslim acts, including 33 aggressive actions over the twelve-day period. This compared with 55 aggressive actions for all of 2014.
Additionally, there were 95 threats or uncivil actions in the 12-day period, compared with only 78 for the whole of last year, the Observatory said. (end) jk.gb