Mulhouse terrorist had previously been jailed for October 7 support, French minister reveals

"In 2023, he was arrested a few weeks after the Hamas massacre on October 7, 2023, and convicted for promoting terrorism," Retailleau said on X Sunday.

 A police car is seen in front of the market Marche du Canal Couvert, after a deadly knife attack the day before, in Mulhouse, eastern France, February 23, 2025. (photo credit: REUTERS/MARCO TRUJILLO)
A police car is seen in front of the market Marche du Canal Couvert, after a deadly knife attack the day before, in Mulhouse, eastern France, February 23, 2025.
(photo credit: REUTERS/MARCO TRUJILLO)

The Algerian Islamist terrorist who murdered one and wounded several more people in Mulhouse, France, on Saturday had been arrested and convicted for promoting terrorism in the wake of the October 7 massacre, according to French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau.

“In 2023, he was arrested a few weeks after the Hamas massacre on October 7, 2023, and convicted for promoting terrorism,” Retailleau said on X/Twitter on Sunday.

Representative Council of Jewish Institutions of France president Yonathan Arfi said Islamism was an ideology not limited to national borders and support for Hamas was leading to the establishment of international jihadist radicalism.

“It is a threat to all democracies,” said Arfi on social media.

The terrorist, who was born in Algeria, had entered France illegally. Retailleau said the Interior Ministry had contacted Algerian authorities 10 times to expel the illegal immigrant, but that Algerian authorities did not collaborate.

 A view shows the market Marche du Canal Couvert, after a deadly knife attack the day before, in Mulhouse, eastern France, February 23, 2025. (credit: REUTERS/MARCO TRUJILLO)
A view shows the market Marche du Canal Couvert, after a deadly knife attack the day before, in Mulhouse, eastern France, February 23, 2025. (credit: REUTERS/MARCO TRUJILLO)

French police and right-wing responses

French police organizations and unions issued statements, angered that the terrorist had been able to conduct the attack while under an expulsion order and registered on a database of dangerous Islamic radicals in French territory. Law enforcement representatives called for greater training and arming of officers in the face of increasing terrorist activity.

National Rally president Jordan Bardella on Saturday decried that despite the expulsion order, the terrorist was “still free to commit the worst acts in France.” Bardella added that the state repeatedly abandoned its citizens in the same manner.

The Association of French Mayors said the mismanagement of individuals under expulsion orders must be changed.

Shouting “Allahu Akbar,” the terrorist attacked passersby and police officers at the eastern French city’s canal market, according to Mulhouse Mayor Michèle Lutz and French police but was neutralized and arrested.

Three other people were taken into custody by authorities, according to Le Parisien, including the terrorist’s two brothers and his host. Lutz praised police for their quick intervention on Sunday and offered sympathy to the victims.


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French Prime Minister François Bayrou said on Saturday that fanaticism had struck again and had left the country in mourning, while French President Emmanuel Macron’s office issued a video statement in which he offered his sympathy to the victims of the attack.