The citizens of Arras (northern France) paid tribute this Sunday to Dominique Bernard, the French teacher who was killed last Friday at the Gambetta-Carnot institute by an Islamist terrorist. The siren in the city of Arras was sounded several times to mark the beginning of the posthumous tribute to the murdered professor. Hundreds of visibly excited neighbors took to the central Plaza de los Héroes, which was packed to the brim.
“Our pain is clear and great,” said Catherine Piecuch, head of the Snes-FSU teachers union. “It is unbearable that the same horror should be repeated three years after the murder of Samuel Paty (the history teacher was beheaded in October 2020 by a radical Islamist for showing caricatures of Muhammad in class),” he explained in his voice. breathy Piecuch.
This trade unionist asked the French Government to take measures to better protect teachers and students in France. “Our school must be protected from all attacks and all instrumentalization. “The whole society must accompany her, support her,” added Piecuch, who asked not to use drama and respect the grief of those teacher
“We are all gathered, united, standing for Dominique Bernard, for his family and his children. Last Friday we were attacked. Arras was attacked. France was attacked again. “One person died, three others were injured, ” recalled the mayor of Arras, Frédéric Leturque.
“There are no words to describe this barbaric act. There are no words to ease the pain. Our Republic is on trial. Arras is being tried, but is standing,” said the mayor, who ended his short speech in a “long live Arras, long live the Republic and long live France.”
At the end of the tribute, the citizens of Arras observed a minute of silence in memory of the murdered professor and sang together La Marseillaise, the national anthem. After the event, many of them placed white roses and bouquets of flowers next to the commemorative plaque as a tribute to the victims of the terrorist attack on November 13, 2015 located on the façade of the town hall of this town. .
Dominique Bernard, married and father of three, was killed on Friday by a 20-year-old man of Russian origin who was booked by the French police for his radicalism.
Three other people were seriously injured after being stabbed by the same individual at the institute where they worked.
