Islamist Attack and Right-Wing Extremist Assault Destabilises France

Islamists and right-wing extremists have a common goal: the disruption and destruction of liberal democracy. France was shaken by attacks on October 29th, 2020 - one carried out by an Islamist, one by a right-wing extremist.

By Simone Rafael | 30 October 2020

Europe is currently discovering how the psychological impact of the coronavirus pandemic is having on populations, is mixed with conspiracy ideologies and discrimination, and how the propensity to violence is increasing in a wide variety of anti-democratic groups. Among the ideologised entrenched groups, the strategy of constant harrowing attacks has a name: accelerationism (cf. Belltower.News). Violence and attacks are intended to accelerate and advance the demise of the world as we know it and of democracy as a system. Depending on ideology, an Islamist or fascist regime is then to emerge from the rubble.

Accelerationism: Popular With Islamists and Right-Wing Extremists

Perpetrators planning terrorism for Islamism or right-wing extremism inspire each other and share instructions and strategies (cf. Belltower.News, ISD/Julia Ebner). Both ideologies do not focus on organising violence, but rather on its fanatical supporters who can act independently when they believe they have a reason to - one which ideological "masterminds" and "alternative disinformation media" continuously give them. The individual actions are not always significant, but they do relay the deadly ideology.

In practical terms, this means that in addition to the threat of the deadly virus that the world is currently facing, there are terrorist actions designed to shake democratic systems and values.

Incidents in Germany: Dresden, Berlin

In Germany, on October 4th, 2020, a man was killed and his partner was seriously injured in an alleged homophobic attack by an Islamist in Dresden (cf. Belltower.News). 

On October 25th, 2020, there was an arson attack on a building in Berlin-Mitte. According to police reports, a letter claiming responsibility from the milieu of conspiracy ideological corona deniers was found. The target of the attack is still unclear, but it could be linked to scientific research (cf. rbb). On the same day, corona deniers had already attacked a branch of the Robert Koch Institute (a research institute advising the public and government on tackling the COVID-19 pandemic) with an explosive device (cf. Belltower.News).

Incidents in France: Paris, Nice, Avignon

On October 16th, 2020, France was shaken by the Islamist-motivated assassination of the teacher Samuel Paty, who was beheaded by an 18-year-old for showing Mohammed cartoons during a class on freedom of expression (cf. Spiegel). While French President Emmanuel Macron campaigned for freedom of expression at the memorial ceremony, Turkish President Recep Erdogan, for example, criticised this - which appeared as a justification for the violent act. 

Less than two weeks later, more terrorist acts of violence occurred in France. In Nice on October 29th 2020, a 21-year-old Tunisian attacked people with a knife in the Catholic basilica of Notre Dame. Two women and the sexton of the church were killed and at least six others were injured. Another 40-year-old woman managed to escape from the building, but then died from her injuries (cf. Spiegel). Here too, the perpetrator seemingly tried to behead everyone. Among other things, he carried a Koran with him and shouted “Allahu akbar” during the act (cf. RTL).

When the police prevented another act of violence in the village of Montfavet near Avignon a little later, the French media first declared that it was a second Islamist attacker who threatened passers-by with a pistol before being shot by the police. However, during the day, it became clear that this second perpetrator was not an Islamist, but a supporter of the right-wing extremist organisation “Generation Identity”, which started as the "Génération Identitaire" in France in 2011 (cf. Belltower.News) and continues to have many followers there.

Avignon: Attacker Was A Fan of “Identitarians”

One of these followers was a 33-year-old who charged at pedestrians with a pistol. Because he did not want to drop his gun when the police approached him, police officers finally fired at him to prevent an act of violence. The 33-year-old was fatally hit and died. He was wearing a jacket of the “Generation Identity” (cf. Independent, Ouest-France). The jacket was part of a racist “border control” action in the context of the 2018 “Defend Europe” campaign by “Identitarians”, primarily from France, Germany, and Austria in the Alps (cf. Belltower.News). 

By now, the public prosecutor's office has confirmed that it was indeed one of the "Identitarian" jackets. According to reports by French researchers and journalists, the perpetrator announced his support for "Generation Identity" on social media. "Generation Identity" in France distanced itself from him - as was to be expected: The jacket had been in “free sale” – although whether this is true is still unclear – and the attacker was allegedly not known to them.

cf. IB Doku/Twitter: https://twitter.com/IbDoku/status/1321847527998693376

„Identitarian“ head Martin Sellner distanced himself quickly on Telegram. [“Attack in Avignon – Generation Identity has nothing to do with it! This Thursday, October 29th, the police shot a person – who was first portrayed as a jihadist by the press – under unclear circumstances. Apart from him, there are no more dead or injured in this incident. A couple of hours later, the media allege close ties to Generation Identity. After we inspected the photo which did the rounds on social media, we can confirm with certainty that this person has never been an activist or a known sympathizer of our organization”]

The Trivialisation of Ideology as “Mental Illness”

After the public prosecutor's office had reported that the assailant had previously recieved psychiatric treatment, this narrative was adopted by the head of the “Identitarians”, Martin Sellner: The attacker was supposedly not an “Identitarians” fan, but mentally ill. Interestingly, the media also decided to used this line of argument: As soon as an Islamist motivation was assumed, there was talk of a second terrorist attack. When the right-wing extremist motivation of the perpetrator became clear, his “mental illness” suddenly became the focus of attention. The public prosecutor even explicitly stated that there was no terrorist motive - although the political motivation of the perpetrator, who wore the jacket of a right-wing extremist group while committing the crime, should at least have been investigated. Following the attack in Hanau, there has been an extensive public discussion about how it is very much possible to be both ideologised to the extreme right and to have mental health problems.

“Identitarians” and Terrorism

For the "Identitarians", it is not the first act of terrorism that refers to them: Although these right-wing extremists always emphasise their "peaceableness". Their conspiracy narrative of the "Great Replacement" has been used by, among others, the Christchurch shooter (2019) and the Halle attacker (2019); the Christchurch shooter had also made donations to Generation Identity.

Hate Calls on the Internet Radicalise to the Point of Violence

In a Telegram chat of the French “Identitarian” leader Damien Rieu, French journalists found a short conversation with an unknown person, in which this person announced: “Thinking about attacking a mosque with a friend. Might result in two or three deaths.” The brief but not dismissive answer: “Don't post this here.”

Conversation between French “Identitarians“ about an attack on a mosque (Source: Twitter / Taha Bouhafs)

In France, right-wing extremists again called for Islamophobic violence after the murder of Samuel Paty - including numerous postings and videos on social media. This can foster motivation and a sense of pressure to act and thus stimulate attacks.

It is clear at this point how acts of violence from Islamist and right-wing extremists directly contribute to the aggravation of public discourses, the diminishing of differentiation, and therefore to the momentum of accelerationism. So when Islamophobia and racist exclusion rise again after an Islamist attack, this drives more people with experiences of discrimination towards the Islamists. Only the coming together of all democratic forces can help, taking decisive action against Islamism and right-wing extremism without drawing on blanket discrimination.