Christian Today report– A memorial for the victims of the January terror attacks in Paris has been vandalised four times in two weeks.
The leader of the group which set up the memorial says they were “sickened and disgusted” to find that flowers and notes had been torn apart and scattered around the shrine at Place de la République.
’17 Never Again’ created the shrine in memory of those who died in the terror attacks last month at the offices of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo and a Kosher supermarket, as well as the policewoman killed in Montrouge. The candles, flowers and messages promoting peace and unity have been targeted three times in the past two weeks, but on Thursday wreaths and drawings were ripped up and messages overwritten by vandals.
“It’s not the wind or the rain that did it as even objects and messages that were covered have been vandalised,” Sabrina Deliry told The Telegraph.
“When this happened before, we repaired the damage without saying anything, but this is too much.”
Hundreds of thousands marched through Paris to pay tribute to victims of the Islamist militant attacks last month, including dozens of world and faith leaders. Overnight, an illuminated sign on the Arc de Triomphe read: “Paris est Charlie”, and people all over the world expressed solidarity with the city.
However, the attacks – in response to cartoons of the Prohpet Muhammad published by Charlie Hebdo – also resulted in protests in several Muslim-majority countries.
More than 10,000 Muslims chanted “Down with Charlie Hebdo” and “Death to blasphemers” in a protest in Lahore, eastern Pakistan, while a Christian school in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province was stormed by hundreds of students protesting against the magazine. Bishops in Niger were forced to suspend Catholic masses and activities following arson attacks on churches and the deaths of at least 10 people.
The memorial attack follows the vandalism of hundreds of Jewish graves at a cemetery in eastern France, amid concern that anti-Semitic attacks are on the rise.
Source: Christian Today