Overview

• Aboubakar Cissé, a 22-year-old Malian man, was fatally stabbed during prayers at a mosque in La Grand-Combe, France, on April 25.
• The suspect, 20-year-old Olivier Hadzovic, fled to Italy and surrendered to police after three days; he remains in Italy awaiting extradition to France.
• French prosecutors are treating the killing as an aggravated hate crime, rejecting terrorism charges, with investigations suggesting the suspect acted on an obsessive desire to kill shared online.
• Hadzovic has admitted to the killing but denies religious hatred, claiming he attacked the first person he encountered, according to his lawyer.
• Cissé’s body arrived in Bamako, Mali, early on May 8, where family, officials, and religious leaders paid tribute during funeral rites and a national homage.