“My brother was French, a practicing Muslim. He defended the values of the Republic and he was cowardly assassinated while doing his duty. ”
Several relatives of Ahmed Merabet came on Monday to talk about this 40-year-old peacekeeper, killed on January 7, 2015 by the Kouachi brothers.
The latter had just committed the
Charlie Hebdo
massacre
.
Barely out of the weekly's offices, they had calmly recharged their Kalashnikovs.
And emptied their magazines on the police called to the scene, taken aback by the violence of their assaults and the power of their machine guns.
Faced with such calibers, their automatic endowment pistols look like children's toys.
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Ahmed Merabet was one of those men faced with the unthinkable.
Terrible irony of fate: it was his last day of service in this public highway unit.
The official had, in fact, passed the competitive examination as a judicial police officer.
January 7 fell on a Wednesday.
The following Monday, after a few days of rest, he was to join an investigation service.
Her sister Nadia saw on television the images of her execution by Chérif Kouachi without knowing that it was her brother, whom she calls, like everyone in the family, “Hocine”.
Crime Loops On TV
These chilling images were viewed by the Assize Court on September 7.
The injured policeman is on the ground.
The terrorist throws him:
"You wanted to kill me!"
With a raised hand, he replies,
"No, it's okay, boss."
The other shoots immediately, aiming for the head, 20 cm or 30 cm away.
Then he shouts:
"Wech brother, we avenged the Prophet."
The investigation will establish that Ahmed Merabet had not previously had the opportunity to use his weapon
I'm standing in front of you, I don't care what you think, you won't get my hate or my forgiveness
Ahmed Merabet's companion
A local resident filmed everything from his balcony, with his laptop.
After giving a copy of the recording to the police, he posted it on his Facebook account.
Then, taken with remorse, withdrew it.
Too late: the crime is looping on televisions around the world.
“I am very angry with the person who posted this video on social media,”
says Nadia Merabet.
I also have a grudge against the channels which have since broadcast it every year at the same time. ”
“The whole world remembers Ahmed as a man on the ground
, his partner enraged.
He was the man I had chosen.
I don't want to talk about our history, it's the only thing that hasn't been stolen from me. "
.
To the accused:
"I am standing in front of you, I do not care what you think, you will have neither my hatred nor my forgiveness."
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All the while, on the screen of the seats, a photo of the victim is projected.
The official Ahmed Merabet wears a white cap and shirt, a black tie.
Serious, straight looking, he's in the midst of his promotion to peacekeepers.
Then, another cliché: “Hocine”, with the family, very relaxed, wearing an elegant suit.
It's a day of celebration.
In the center, Ahmed Merabet's mother, whom he adored, is surrounded by her children and grandchildren.
She is dressed in a traditional Maghreb outfit that conceals nothing of her radiant smile.
