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France

France mourns slain police officer

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By Catherine Hardy  with AFP
France mourns slain police officer

A ceremony has been held in Paris to honour the police officer shot dead on the Champs Elysee last week.

Mourners gathered in the courtyard of main police headquarters in the French capital.

They were joined by President Francois Hollande and presidential candidates Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen.

Xavier Jugele

37-year-old Xavier Jugele died when an attacker opened fire on a police van last Thursday evening.

He was sitting in the vehicle and was killed when attacker Karim Cheurfi opened fire.

He has been posthumously awarded France’s Legion of Honour.

The ceremony

The memorial got underway at 11am at the police headquarters on the Ile de la Cite in the centre of Paris.

President Francois Hollande took the salute.

Those present included:

  • Francois Hollande
  • Emmanuel Macron
  • Marine Le Pen
  • former president Nicolas Sarkozy
  • former prime ministers Manuel Valls, Jean-Marc Ayrault and Jean-Pierre Raffarin

130 colleagues of the deceased officer are also present.

“Xavier died while doing his duty,” said Johanna Primevert, the police spokesperson. “The nation, its citizens and the police have it in their hearts to pay tribute to him and show their admiration for what he has done.”

The grieving partner

Xavier Jugele’s partner gave a moving speech during the ceremony.

At the same time, a service was held at the town hall of Romorantin, Xavier Jugele’s home town in the Loir-et-Cher department where he will also be buried.

13th of November, 2015

Xavier Jugele had already come face-to-face with terrorism before last Thursday evening.

He was sent to the Bataclan concert venue on the night of the Paris attacks on November 13th, 2015.

He returned to the Bataclan when it re-opened last November for a concert by the musician, Sting.