The main suspect and two other people are still in custody

They are still being questioned by investigators. The custody of the main suspect in the attack on the synagogue in La Grande-Motte (Hérault) and two other people, including one of his entourage, continued on Wednesday, August 28, announced the National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor’s Office (Pnat) contacted by AFP. “A judicial investigation will be opened this afternoon”the Pnat said, indicating that it would communicate in the afternoon once the police custody was lifted.

On Saturday morning, shortly before 8:30 a.m., a 33-year-old Algerian was filmed by CCTV cameras, his face uncovered and a Palestinian flag draped around his waist, as he tried to set fire to the Beth Yaacov synagogue in this seaside town, before the morning Shabbat service which welcomes many worshipers.

The suspect did not enter the religious building but tried to set it on fire, while five people, including the rabbi, were inside. He then had to flee in the face of the rapid intervention of the police before being arrested on Saturday evening in Nîmes.

The analysis of the video surveillance images is underway in order to determine the weapons held by the suspect. In these images, we can see in particular what appears to be the butt of a handgun on his belt. The investigation, opened in particular for attempted terrorist assassinations, is focused on reconstructing the possible accomplices of the suspect and to specify what the perpetrator’s plan was.