On the 7 th January 2015, at least three armed men burst into the offices of the French satirical news weekly Charlie Hebdo, where they opened fire, shouting « Allah Akbar ! ».

At least 12 people are dead, 4 others are in critical condition, and a dozen opther people are wounded.

This attack could create a fracture in French society between Muslims and non-Muslims. In fact, French Muslims have often felt that they were being insulted by Charlie Hebdo, while the commando claimed to be inspired by Islam.

Immediately, the French Press denounced an attack by Islamic terrorists, based entirely on the killers’ shouts – these men have still not been identified.

The commando spoke in French, and recognised the members of the editorial staff.

Charlie Hebdo was officially created in 1992 by Philippe Val, Gébé, Cabu and Renaud, and unofficially by President François Mitterrand, using secret funds from the Elysée.

Charlie Hebdo used to be an administrator of the Réseau Voltaire, before leaving in 1997 after a disagreement with the association. Charlie Hebdo was militantly in favour of the interdiction of the Front National, while the Réseau Voltaire defended the FN’s right of association, but continued working to interdict its armed branch, the DPS [1]. Later on, the relations between the two groups deteriorated - Charlie Hebdo attributed the attacks of the 11th September to Al-Qaïda, and began a violently anti-Islamic campaign. On the contrary, the Réseau Voltaire demonstrated the impossibility of the official version, and accused a faction of the US military-industrial lobby. Finally, in 2007, the director of Charlie Hebdo became close with President Nicolas Sarkozy. The French President issued orders for the elimination of the president of the Réseau Voltaire, who went into exile.

Translation
Pete Kimberley