Peter Cherif, Jihad Veteran and Childhood Friend of the Kouachis, in the Dock

ASSISES – Peter Cherif is suspected of having facilitated the integration of Chérif Kouachi, one of the Charlie Hebdo terrorists, into the ranks of Al Qaïda

On October 23, 2020, when Peter Cherif’s face appeared on the screens of the specially composed assize court, the room was packed. The successive postponements of his hearing – by videoconference from the Bois d’Arcy prison, in Yvelines – had not changed anything. It must be said that the testimony of this jihad veteran, a childhood friend of the Kouachis, is one of the most anticipated in the trial of the January 2015 attacks. The justice system suspects him of having information on the genesis of the attack on Charlie Hebdo. If he is not in the dock, it is only because he was arrested in December 2018, in Djibouti, after seven years on the run. The judges had then completed their investigations, which is why his case was separated.

But the expectations of the room are quickly doused. From the first questions, Peter Cherif retreats into a chilling silence. When the president questions him about his identity, he responds with surahs from the Koran, interrupting himself to make a proselytizing speech. Faced with the insistence of the magistrate, he finally blurts out, exasperated: “I was forced to come and testify on a case that I have nothing to do with (sic), I will not answer any questions […]I don’t have an attitude to shock, I don’t (…) - 20minutes

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