Emmanuel Macron Condemns Mosque Killing, Says ‘No Place For Religious Hate In France’

French President Emmanuel Macron has strongly condemned the brutal killing of a young Muslim man inside a mosque, declaring that “racism and hatred based on religion can have no place in France.” The President made his remarks on Sunday following the tragic stabbing of Aboubakar Cisse, a Malian man in his early 20s, at a mosque in La Grand-Combe, a small village in the southern Gard region.

“Freedom of worship cannot be violated,” Macron posted on X, extending his support to “our fellow Muslim citizens” in his first public response to the attack that shocked the nation.

Un jeune a été atrocement assassiné dans une mosquée du Gard.

À sa famille, à nos compatriotes de confession musulmane, j’adresse le soutien de la Nation.

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Le racisme et la haine en raison de la religion n’auront jamais leur place en France. La liberté de culte est intangible.

— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) April 27, 2025

Attacker identified

The horrific incident occurred on Friday, when the suspected attacker, identified as 20-year-old Olivier A., allegedly stabbed Cisse up to 50 times. The attacker, who is not a Muslim and is reportedly of Bosnian origin, initially prayed alongside the victim before launching the assault. Disturbingly, the assailant filmed the attack, later sending the footage to another individual, who briefly uploaded it to social media before deleting it.

Despite an ongoing manhunt, the attacker remains at large. Authorities have described him as “potentially extremely dangerous,” and regional prosecutor Abdelkrim Grini stressed the urgency of apprehending him to prevent further violence.

While Islamophobia is considered the primary motive, prosecutors have indicated that other motives are also being investigated. “Certain elements could suggest that this motive was perhaps not the primary one… or the only one,” Grini said during a press conference alongside Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau.

The murder has sparked outrage across France. Around 1,000 people gathered on Sunday in La Grand-Combe, a village of 5,000 residents, to honor the victim’s memory. Meanwhile, a protest “against Islamophobia” was scheduled in Paris later that evening.

The French Council of the Muslim Faith (CFCM) condemned the killing as an “anti-Muslim terrorist attack” and urged the Muslim community to stay vigilant. The Representative Council of Jewish Institutions of France (CRIF) also denounced the attack, calling it a “despicable crime that must revolt the hearts of all French people.”

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