Al-Qaeda's Yemeni branch has claimed
responsibility for the deadly attack on the
French Charlie Hebdo magazine, saying the
shooting was an operation to teach the
French the limits of freedom of expression.
Abu Hareth al-Nezari, an senior member of
Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP),
made the claim in an audio recording
published online late on Friday.
"Some French were not polite with the
prophets and that was the reason why a
few of the believers, who loved Allah and
his prophet and loved martyrdom, went to
them to teach them how to behave and how
to be polite with the prophets and to teach
them that the freedom of expression has
limits and boundaries," al-Nezari said in the
recording.
Wednesday's attack on the magazine's
office, that left 12 people dead, and
ensuing hostage seizes have shocked France
and triggered a massive seucity operation.
In addition to those killed at Charlie Hebdo ,
three civilians and two police officers have
been killed.
One of the attackers, Said Kouachi, claimed
to have been trained and financed by al-
Qaeda in Yemen.
Yemeni intelligence officials confirmed to Al
Jazeera that he had indeed been in Yemen in
2011, fighting with al-Qaeda, and had been
deported.
If confirmed, the attack would be the first
time al-Qaeda's branch in Yemen has
successfully carried out an operation in the
West after at least two earlier attempts.
Said, 32 and his 34-year-old brother Cherif
Kouachi were killed northeast of Paris on
Friday, while a gunman who took several
hostages at a supermarket in the east of
the capital was also shot dead in a standoff
with police.
At least four hostages held at the kosher
grocery store in Porte De Vincennes also
died on Friday as police stormed the site.
French police are still hunting for Hayat
Boumeddiene, suspected of involvement in
the kosher store siege and the shooting of
a policewoman.
Police said Boumeddiene was the wife of
Amedy Coulibaly, who laid siege to the
supermarket.
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