Visiting a school in the 13th arrondissement of Marseille this Thursday, a recovery day for schoolchildren, Emmanuel Macron said he had “a special thought” for Samuel Paty, the teacher who had been beheaded in October 2020 after showing caricatures of Muhammad to his students.
"I have a very special thought for the parents and colleagues of Samuel Paty," said the head of state at the end of a short video to mark the start of the school year.
Have a good start!
pic.twitter.com/IwYW5qVZcz
- Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) September 2, 2021
"No one has forgotten" this drama, which "reminds us how much the beautiful teaching profession is at the heart of the nation, of our pact for our children and all of us," he added.
Samuel Paty, 47, was beheaded on October 16 near his college in Conflans-Sainte-Honorine (Yvelines) by Abdoullakh Anzorov, a young Chechen refugee who accused him of having shown caricatures of Muhammad to his students.
In the video, Emmanuel Macron affirms that the government is "doing the maximum to make this return to school as normal as possible" despite the Covid-19 pandemic, welcoming "the exceptional mobilization" of teachers and parents of students.
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Back to School
Marseilles
Emmanuel Macron
Primary school
Samuel paty