Paris (AFP)

France pays national tribute to Samuel Paty at the Sorbonne on Wednesday, while seven people will be presented during the day to an anti-terrorism judge for possible indictments after the assassination of the teacher.

The ceremony, in the presence of 400 guests, including around 100 students from establishments in Ile-de-France, will begin at 7:30 p.m. in the courtyard of the Sorbonne, a symbolic place of the spirit of the Enlightenment and education.

According to the Elysee, President Emmanuel Macron should arrive a little earlier to hand over the Legion of Honor posthumously to the teacher, in the presence of his family.

After the arrival of the coffin, a song will be interpreted by the orchestra of the Republican Guard and the control of Radio France and two texts will be read by students and teachers.

The Head of State will then deliver a brief speech, followed by a minute's silence in tribute to the history-geography professor.

His memory was praised throughout the day on Tuesday: thousands of people took part in a white march in Conflans-Sainte-Honorine to say no "to barbarism".

And all the deputies observed a minute of silence, gathered on the steps of the Palais Bourbon.

- WhatsApp messages -

The investigation into the attack is progressing: seven people, including two minors, will be presented to an anti-terrorism judge on Wednesday for possible indictments, AFP learned from a judicial source.

Among them is the student's parent who called for mobilization after the course on freedom of expression given by Samuel Paty on October 5.

Anti-terrorism investigators, who are looking for possible complicity, are particularly interested in messages exchanged on WhatsApp between this father and the assailant, Abdoullakh Anzorov, killed by the police after the assassination of the professor.

The sulphurous Islamist activist Abdelhakim Sefrioui, who had accompanied the student's parent in his mobilization, will also be presented to a judge, as well as two minors, suspected of having received money from the assailant in exchange for information on the victim.

Three friends of the assailant, who spontaneously surrendered to the Evreux police station on Friday evening, must also be heard by a judge.

According to a source close to the file, one of them is suspected of having escorted the assailant, while another is suspected of having accompanied him during the purchase of a weapon which was used during his attack.

The custody of nine other people was however lifted Tuesday evening, without being prosecuted at this stage.

Among these people are three schoolchildren, the parents, the grandfather and the little brother of the murderer, but also the companion of Mr. Sefrioui as well as a man already convicted of terrorism and who was in contact with the assailant.

- "Intensify the action" -

Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday promised to "intensify" the government's action against supporters of political Islamism, more than ever in the sights of the authorities.

"It is not a question of making new declarations (...) these are acts which are expected by our fellow citizens. These acts will intensify", declared the Head of State in Bobigny, before announcing the dissolution on Wednesday of the pro-Palestinian collective Cheikh Yassine, founded by Mr. Sefrioui.

For his part, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin ruled that "for the first time", "political Islam (had) led directly to an attack".

Asked Tuesday on BFM on the risk of a new attack in France, he also argued that "the question is not whether there will be an attack, but when".

In a telephone interview, Emmanuel Macron asked his Russian counterpart Vladimir Poutine to "strengthen" cooperation between their two countries "in the fight against terrorism and illegal immigration".

About fifty associations, suspected of having connections with radical Islam, are in the crosshairs of the authorities, in particular the Collective against Islamophobia in France (CCIF) and the humanitarian association BarakaCity, which dispute the accusations made against them.

The authorities also ordered the closure of the Pantin mosque (Seine-Saint-Denis), which should be effective Wednesday, for having relayed on his Facebook page one of the videos denouncing the course on the cartoons of Samuel Paty.

bur-jt-gd-leb / am / plh

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