- Kurdish protests have taken to the streets of Paris calling just justice after three people were killed.
- A gunman killed three as he fired on people at a Kurdish cultural centre.
- The attacker was wounded and taken into custody.
Hundreds of people have taken to the streets of Paris to call for justice after a shooting in a mainly Kurdish neighbourhood in the French capital that killed three people.
A gunman carried out the killings on Friday as he fired on people at a Kurdish cultural centre, a nearby cafe and a hair salon in a busy part of Paris’s 10th district. Three other people were also wounded in the attack, which was aimed at foreigners, according to authorities.
The suspected attacker, 69, was wounded during the incident and is now in custody. Last year, he was charged with attacking migrants and was released on bail earlier this month. Investigators considered a possible racist motive for the shooting.
After an angry crowd clashed with police on Friday afternoon, Kurdish community leaders called for a gathering from midday (11:00 GMT) on Saturday at Place de la Republique square, a traditional venue for demonstrations in the city.
READ | Paris shooter who killed three admits being ‘racist’
Reporting from the protest, Al Jazeera’s Osama Bin Javaid said there was frustration among members of the Kurdish community, many of whom believe they were deliberately targeted.
“They are still looking for answers from the police: Why did it take so long for them to arrive, why have they not designated this a terrorist attack and why they didn’t provide security to the cultural centre, which they had asked for earlier,” he added.
“People here are calling for justice and they want it now,” Bin Javaid said.
The Paris police chief met members of the Kurdish community to try to allay their fears before Saturday’s rally.
Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said the suspect was clearly targeting foreigners, had acted alone and was not officially affiliated with any extreme-right or other radical movements.
The suspect had past convictions for illegal arms possession and armed violence.
