Eight people are going on trial in Paris accused of terrorism charges over the beheading of a teacher four years ago.
Samuel Paty, 47, was murdered by an Islamic extremist near his school on 16 October 2020 in an attack that shocked France.
Police shot dead an 18-year-old Russian of Chechen origin, Abdullah Anzorov, soon after the attack.
Mr Paty was attacked after holding a class on freedom of expression for his middle school students when he showed caricatures of the Prophet Mohammad – an act considered blasphemy by many Muslims.
Those on trial include friends of Anzorov who are accused of helping to buy weapons for the attack.
Others in court are people who allegedly spread false information online about the teacher and his class.
Members of Mr Paty’s family, including his two sisters, were at the court for the start of the trial, which is being held under high security.
Five of the accused, who are currently imprisoned, were seated in a wide glass box.
Three others, placed under judicial supervision, sat on the defendants’ benches outside the box.
The trial at a court in Paris will take place under high security. Pic: Reuters
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Much attention at the trial will focus on Brahim Chnina, the Muslim father of a teenager who was 13 at the time and who had claimed she had been excluded from Mr Paty’s class when he showed the caricatures.
Chnina, 52, allegedly sent a series of messages to his contacts denouncing Mr Paty, along with the address of the school in the Paris suburb of Conflans Saint-Honorine.
In reality, Chnina’s daughter had lied to him and had never attended the lesson in question.
