People hold placards reading in French "I am Charlie" during a gathering at the Place de la Republique (Republic square) in Paris, on January 7, 2015, following an attack by unknown gunmen on the offices of the satirical weekly, Charlie Hebdo. ; Credit: DOMINIQUE FAGET/AFP/Getty Images
By Jamey Keaten and Lori Hinnant
Associated Press PARIS (AP) - Masked gunmen stormed the Paris offices of a weekly newspaper that caricatured the Prophet Muhammad, methodically killing 12 people Wednesday, including the editor, before escaping in a car. It was France's deadliest postwar terrorist attack.
Shouting "Allahu akbar!" as they fired, the men also spoke flawless, unaccented French in the military-style noon-time attack on the weekly newspaper Charlie Hebdo, located near Paris' Bastille monument. The publication's depictions of Islam have drawn condemnation and threats before - it was firebombed in 2011 - although it also satirized other religions and political figures. President Francois Hollande called the slayings "a terrorist attack without a doubt," and said several other attacks have been thwarted in France in recent weeks. Fears have been running high in France and elsewhere in Europe that jihadis returning from conflicts in Syria and Iraq will stage attacks at home.
WEIGH IN
How should French leaders respond? What about Islamic leaders? Some have argued there should be no expectation on Muslims to join the dialogue. What would be the pros and cons of taking that tack?
Guests:
Dana Lewis, correspondent in Paris today for Al-jazeera America, the U.S. cable news channel that covers both domestic and international news. Al Jazeera America can be seen in Los Angeles and Southern California on Time Warner Channel 445, AT&T U-Verse 1219, DirecTV 347 and Dish Channel 215.)
Emily Gottreich, interim chair of the center for Middle Eastern studies, Berkeley
Salam Al-Marayati, President, Muslim Public Affairs Council, established in 1988 with a mission toward integration of Muslims into American pluralism