Although he denied any involvement during the trial, the former jihadist admits to having served as a translator before the judges.
Although he had always denied any involvement in the alleged acts, French jihad veteran Peter Cherif admitted on Tuesday at his trial before the special assize court in Paris to having been one of the jailers of three French aid workers kidnapped in Yemen in 2011.
“I acknowledge the facts (…). I am the translator.” who acted as an interface between the hostages and their Yemeni captors from Al-Qaeda, declared the 42-year-old accused in a faint voice. The unexpected statements of the jihadist, who has been tight-lipped since the start of his trial, suspected in particular of having played a role alongside one of the attackers of Charlie Hebdo in January 2015, had the effect of a thunderclap in the courtroom reserved for “major trials”.
“I regret having participated in all this”, “I was not aware of the kidnapping plan” humanitarians, explained Peter Cherif standing in his box in a black suit, white shirt and tie. “It was a complicated situation for me”he assured. “What I was able to do, to say, was the orders of the chief”. “If I had not been there, I am convinced that the conditions (of detention of the hostages) would have been even more difficult”he justified himself.
Face to face with a former hostage
During the investigation, Peter Cherif denied any involvement in this kidnapping. “We did not expect these confessions”admitted Benjamin Chambre, one of the attorneys general, before noting that “these confessions” are accompanied by a new “legend” for the benefit of the accused. The magistrate thus made fun of the accused’s attempts to minimise his role, or even to assert that without him the hostages’ situation would have been worse.
With his arms crossed and his head slightly lowered, Peter Cherif refused to answer the questions of the anti-terrorist prosecutor. Before the accused’s late confession, investigators had already established that he was present in Yemen when the three French humanitarians from the Lyon-based NGO Triangle Génération Humanitaire were kidnapped in May 2011 by Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP).
Peter Cherif’s statements came after the moving testimony in court of one of the former hostages, Amélie, 45, who recognized the accused as one of her jailers. “I have the feeling that, clearly, it was this person (in the dock) who was there” during our detention, she said. She points out the “corpulence” of the accused, his “damaged ankles” corresponding to injuries during a parachute jump at that time. And above all his “voice”which she heard in court on Monday.
The harsh story of detention conditions
“Why acknowledge the facts now?”asks the president of the special assize court, Frédérique Aline. “I want Madame (Amélie) to be able to turn the page on this story. I take my responsibilities. Out of respect for this person. Silence would not have helped.”Peter Cherif replies. When the president tries to get details about his stay in Yemen, he will become silent again.
The three French aid workers were kidnapped on May 28, 2011 as they were returning home to the Yemeni city of Seyoun. Held captive in a “cave” from the desert and then to other places, they will not be released until November 2011.
Amélie and the two other former hostages, Pierre and Léa (who both testified by video) described very trying conditions of detention. At night in particular, the hostages had chains on their feet. “I felt like an object, a commodity, like nothing”Amélie remembers, her voice trembling.
“The trial is not over”
To communicate with the kidnappers who did not understand or speak French or English, they communicated with “the translator”which they had also nicknamed “the Frenchman” because of his perfect French. “I regret having contributed to your suffering… regardless of my will. I apologize to you.”Peter Cherif told the former hostages.
Arrested in Djibouti in December 2018, Peter Cherif is on trial for terrorist criminal association. In addition to his involvement in the kidnapping of French aid workers in Yemen, he must also answer for the role he may have played in the recruitment of his childhood friend, Chérif Kouachi, one of the perpetrators of the attack on Charlie Hebdo.
Just before the hearing was suspended early in the evening, a lawyer for the civil parties, Mr. Antoine Casubolo-Ferro, urged the accused not to withdraw into himself. “The trial is not over”Peter Cherif simply says before, in a lunar way, defending the patriarchy.
