France’s Battlefront: Islamist Attacks Escalate in Schools
22nd December 2023
The increase in Islamist attacks in France in recent months has particularly affected the teaching profession. State schools have long been a symbol of the French nation and the Republic, which explains this focus by terrorists.
Since the beheading of history teacher Samuel Paty in October 2020, who was murdered for commenting on cartoons depicting the Islamic Prophet Mohammed in a lesson on freedom of expression, terrorist acts targeting teachers have increased in France.
Schools have become the battleground of choice for Islamists, whose influence is growing among teenagers who ingest the rhetoric of jihad via a number of influential social media accounts. The aim is for these budding fighters to bring the battle to school. From there, everything becomes a pretext for stirring up controversy and demanding respect for Sharia law or Mohammed in the classroom.