A French schoolgirl admits lying that unfortunately led to the death of her teacher last year. After spreading false claims that caused her teacher to get beheaded, a french schoolgirl has admitted to her lies.
In October, shortly after he showed his class cartoons of the Muslim Prophet Muhammad, Samuel Paty was beheaded in broad daylight, just outside of the school he taught.
French Schoolgirl Admits Lying
The identity of the 13-year-old french schoolgirl who spread the false claims that caused his demise is still being considered confidential. The girl's claims about Samuel Paty last year sparked an online campaign against the teacher, and now, she admitted that she was not in class during that day.
The death of Paty shocked the whole of France and even prompted an outpouring of support, marches, and memorial ceremonies around the country.
According to the BBC, the french schoolgirl who spread the false claims initially told her father that Samuel Paty asked the Muslim students to exit the classroom since he was showing the cartoon during his free speech and blasphemy class.
However, the girl has now admitted that she did not even see the cartoons since she was not in class that day. She also added that it was another girl from her class who showed her the cartoons.
In a statement, the girl's lawyer, Mbeko Tabula, said that the 13-year-old felt trapped in the situation since her classmates requested her to be a spokesperson for the class.
Before Samuel Paty's death, the girl's father filed a complaint against the now-deceased teacher to the school and started a campaign on social media based on the events narrated by his daughter. He also identified the school Conflans-Sainte-Honorine, west of Paris, and Paty in his post, The Guardian reported.
Shortly after the murder of Paty, prosecutors stated that his killing had a "direct causal link" to the online campaign that was started against him.
Paty's killer, Abdullakh Anzorov, 18 years old, died after being shot by the police shortly after the attack.
Schoolgirl Admits Lying Sparks Anger
The lawyer for the deceased teacher expressed her anger over the false claims that were spread on social media, leading to Samuel Paty's death.
According to Yahoo! News, Virginie Le Roy, the lawyer for Paty's family, told RTL radio that everything in the investigation showed the girl lied. Le Roy also added that she was very skeptical of the girl's version of the events wherein she claimed that she was acting as a spokesperson for her classmates.
It has been found out that the online campaign started by the father of the french schoolgirl who spread the false claims were all based on distorted accounts.
Based on reports, since he was teaching free speech and blasphemy in the previous years, Samuel Paty had done a similar lesson. He also previously warned his students that he was showing a depiction of the Muslim Prophet Muhammad and asked his students who might be offended to simply close their eyes.
In addition, Le Roy also said that the girl's family knew the truth behind the girl's absence on the day of the lesson and the real reason for her suspension. Thus, she said that the father believing his daughter's lies was "really weak."
In the Islamic faith, depictions of the Prophet Muhammad, such as cartoons, are considered taboo and a high form of blasphemy by Muslims.
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