Only one of two men arrested after Quebec mosque shooting a ‘suspect’

Mohamed Labidi, vice-president of the Quebec City mosque attacked a day before, is comforted by Quebec premier Philippe Couillard, left, and Quebec City mayor Regis Labeaume, right, during a news conference on January 30, 2017. Jacques Boissinot/The Canadian Press via APShow less

QUEBEC CITY // Canadian police said on Monday that only one of two young men arrested after a deadly mosque shooting was a “suspect”, with the second “now considered a witness”.

Police and witnesses initially described two masked men firing inside the Quebec City mosque on Sunday evening, killing six people and wounding eight.

It was unclear whether they still believed two assailants were involved. Police said they did not believe there were other suspects but were investigating.

One of the detainees was arrested near the mosque, while a second surrendered himself to police and confessed to taking part in the killing, said Quebec police inspector Denis Turcotte.

More than 50 people were at the Quebec Islamic Cultural Centre when the shooting erupted on Sunday night. The dead ranged in age from 35 to 65.

Worshipper Ali Hamadi said he left the mosque a few minutes before the shooting and that a friend, Abdelkrim Hassen, was killed. He said Hassen, who worked in information technology for the government, had three daughters and a wife, whom he had to notify of his friend’s death.

Quebec City court clerk Isabelle Ferland identified Alexandre Bissonnette and Mohamed El Khadir as the suspects. Police did not say which of the men was now considered a witness.

One of the men was arrested at the scene, while the second was arrested in his car on a nearby bridge after calling 911 to say he wanted to cooperate with police.

Police didn’t give a possible motive for the attack but Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau and Quebec premier Philippe Couillard both described it as a terrorist act.

US president Donald Trump called Mr Trudeau to express condolences to the Canadian people and to offer any assistance that might be needed, the prime minister’s office said.

“We condemn this terrorist attack on Muslims in a centre of worship and refuge,” Mr Trudeau had said earlier. “It is heart-wrenching to see such senseless violence. Diversity is our strength, and religious tolerance is a value that we, as Canadians, hold dear.”

“Muslim-Canadians are an important part of our national fabric, and these senseless acts have no place in our communities, cities and country,” he said.

The attack came amid heightened tensions worldwide over Mr Trump’s ban on travellers and refugees from seven Muslim countries entering the United States.

Canada is generally very welcoming toward immigrants and all religions, but the French-speaking province of Quebec has been embroiled in a long-simmering debate about race and religious accommodation. The province’s previous separatist government had called for a ban on religious symbols, including the hijab, in public institutions.

Mr Couillard said he would “not go there” when asked if he blamed rhetoric in the neighbouring US.

“Quebec is a good, generally loving society but we have these devils as other societies have. We have to recognise that and fight them,” Mr Couillard said. The premier and Muslim leaders held hands at a press conference in Quebec City.

In the summer of 2016 a pig’s head was left on the doorstep of the Quebec Islamic Cultural Centre in the middle of Ramadan, when Muslims fast from dawn to sunset.

“The Muslim community was the target of this murderous attack,” Mr Couillard said. He said solidarity rallies would be held across Quebec on Monday.

Quebec City mayor Regis Labeaume, appearing shaken, said: “No person should have to pay with their life, for their race, their colour, their sexual orientation or their religious beliefs.”

* Agence France-Presse, Associated Press