Attacker confesses during trial for triple murder in Nice church
The man on trial for three counts of murder in the Notre Dame Basilica in the southern French city of Nice in 2020 has made a surprise confession, the Nice-Matin newspaper reported from the courtroom on Monday.
The 25-year-old Tunisian defendant is accused of killing three people with a knife in the church on October 29, 2020, and seriously injuring seven others.
Following the attack, police officers shot the perpetrator, who survived despite serious injuries.
At the start of the trial, the defendant had claimed not to be able to remember anything.
In his confession, he linked his crime to the suffering that he said is inflicted on Muslims.
"They kill Muslims every day," he said, referring to the Western world. "And these Muslims who die are innocent. Don't they also have a family?" he continued.
"You don't care, you have no compassion, they are people too," he added.
During the trial, relatives of the victims, including children, described the attack's impact on their lives.
A volunteer firefighter testified through sobs that a woman who died from her injuries had asked her to tell her children that she loved them.
The defendant, who is charged with murder and attempted murder with a terrorist motive, faces life imprisonment. The trial is scheduled to end on Wednesday.
According to the results of the investigation, the man arrived in France via Italy shortly before the attack. Photographs related to the Islamic State terrorist organization were found on his mobile phones.
The suspect had also recorded an audio file referring to France as a "land of infidels."
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