After Kermiche’s last attempt to reach Syria in May 2015, he was detained until March, when he was released despite an appeal by Paris prosecutors that was rejected. He first tried to reach Syria in March 2015, travelling on his brother’s identity card, but was stopped in Germany after a family member alerted authorities that he was missing, Molins said. One of the two knife-wielding men who attacked a church in France on Tuesday has been named as 19-year-old Adel Kermiche, who was under close surveillance after two failed attempts to reach Syria last year, France’s anti-terrorism prosecutor said. However, he was forced to wear an electronic tag so police could track his whereabouts and was allowed to leave his home only for a few hours a day, prosecutor Francois Molins told a news conference. The Amaq news agency, which is affiliated with the Islamic State militant group, said two of its “soldiers” had carried out the attack.

Source: Indian Express July 26, 2016 21:33 UTC