AFP, PARIS: Several thousand people gathered in Paris Sunday in a low-key ceremony to mark a year since a million and half citizens thronged the French capital in a show of unity following jihadist attacks on satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo and a Jewish supermarket. People attending the event in the Place de la Republique were searched by armed police before standing around a simple stage and a monument covered in the red, white and blue French flag.
President Francois Hollande unveiled a plaque next to an oak tree planted in the square in memory of the victims of the jihadist outrages that rocked France in 2015, beginning with the shootings at Charlie Hebdo. Veteran rocker Johnny Hallyday performed a short song and the army’s choir gave a rousing rendition of the Marseillaise. The understated event was a far cry from January 11, 2015, when four million citizens rallied across France, in the biggest mass demonstrations since the end of World War II.
The outpouring of support for freedom of expression was crowned by a huge march in Paris that included German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas.
Meanwhile, French President Francois Hollande made an unannounced visit to the main mosque in Paris on Sunday, a year after jihadist attacks in the French capital. “The president had a short conversation and a moment of friendship and fraternity over a cup of tea,” a French presidency official said. Earlier, Hollande attended a low-key event to mark a year since 1.5 million people thronged Paris in a show of unity following the shootings at Charlie Hebdo newspaper and a Jewish supermarket. Mosques across France opened their doors to the public this weekend in a bid by the Muslim community to build bridges following a series of jihadist attacks that rocked France in 2015.