Photo: Father Jacques Hamel was killed while celebrating mass at a Saint-Etienne church. (Suppied: Saint Etienne Parish)

Christians, Muslims mourn French priest murdered by jihadists

31 Jul 2016,  (BBC)

Muslim and Christian groups came together to mourn a French priest murdered by jihadists, as authorities charged a man in connection to the brutal church attack that rocked the nation.

A shell-shocked France is still coming to terms with the jihadist murder of a priest at his altar that has sparked fears of tensions between religions in the secular nation.

In a bid to forge togetherness between the communities, a "brotherhood march" was held in the southeastern city of Lyon, supported by a regional Muslim council and a Catholic group.

Some 400 people marched in silence, as mourners at the front of the crowd carried banners that read: "This is not a religious war" and "We are all brothers and sisters."

"We think it is crucial to leave no room for resignation, resentment or fear, and to take a stand for togetherness," Abdelkader Bendidi, who heads the regional Muslim council, said in a statement.

"Let's not give the agents of terror a second victory by giving in to hate," said imam Azzedine Gaci.

"It doesn't matter what our religious beliefs are, or if we have none at all. These attacks won't divide us. Instead, they will unite us around one idea: reconciliation," said Foucauld Giuliani, of a Catholic group.

In the southwestern city of Bordeaux, around 400 people attended a vigil for the 85-year-old Father Jacques Hamel, who had his throat slit by IS-inspired teenaged attackers.

Prayers were also held at the Saint-Etienne church where the killing took place.

Man charged over alleged link to church attack

Meanwhile, police are still trying to piece together links to the two 19-year-olds who carried out the attack, Adel Kermiche and Abdel Malik Petitjean, both of whom were on intelligence services' radar and had tried to go to Syria.

Authorities have filed charges against a 19-year-old man accused of "criminal conspiracy with terrorists", after police discovered a mobile phone video of one of the assailants at his home.

Police were still questioning Petitjean's cousin and a Syrian refugee, after a photocopy of his passport found at Kermiche's house.

A 16-year-old was released but could ultimately face a separate investigation for possessing jihadist propaganda, authorities added.

A source close to the enquiry said that a 17-year-old, who had tried to travel to Syria with Kermiche, was arrested in Geneva and sent back to France just a few days before the attack.

However, "nothing suggests he was in any way implicated in the attack" at this stage, the source added.

Mosque financing in the spotlight after violence

Prime Minister Manuel Valls has said he would consider a temporary ban on foreign financing of mosques, urging a "new model" for relations with Islam after a spate of jihadist attacks.

France has just over 2,000 mosques for one of Europe's largest Muslim populations of around five million, and some large mosques have reportedly been financed by Saudi Arabia and other Gulf or northern African countries.

After meeting with President Francois Hollande earlier this week, the rector of the Paris Mosque Dalil Boubakeur himself suggested "certain reforms of the institutions" of Islam.

Since the assault, harrowing details have emerged about what happened in the church as well as a chilling warning from one of the attackers.

L'Express magazine revealed that Kermiche had described the modus operandi of the attack on the encrypted messaging app Telegram, recorded just a few days before the attack.