Thursday, December 15, 2011

Nordine Amarani and the 2011 Liège Belgium Grenade attack

2//  http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/belgium/8956132/Liege-attacks-Belgian-gunman-Nordine-Amrani-had-grudge-against-society.html dec 14, 2011

Liege attacks: Belgian gunman Nordine Amrani had 'grudge against society'

Belgian gunman Nordine Amrani launched his attack on Christmas shopping crowds in Leige's busy Place Saint Lambert because he knew that he was going to be sent back to prison and had a "grudge against society", his lawyers said on Wedesday.


1// from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nordine_Amrani

2011 Liège attack

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  (Redirected from Nordine Amrani)
2011 Liège attack

The bus shelter on Saint-Lambert Square, Liège. The killer was standing and killed himself on the platform on the right.

Location of the attack
LocationLiège, Wallonia, Belgium
Coordinates50.645°N 5.573°E
DateTuesday, 13 December 2011
12:33 (CET) (UTC+01:00)
TargetCivilians
Attack typeMurder–suicide
Weapon(s)FN FAL, Grenades
Death(s)6 (incl. the perpetrator)[1]
Injured125
PerpetratorNordine Amrani[2]
On 13 December 2011, a murder–suicide attack took place in the city of Liège in the Wallonia region of Belgium.[3]
The attacker, 33-year-old Nordine Amrani,[4][5] threw grenades and fired an FN FAL[6] rifle at civilians on Saint-Lambert Square. The attack killed 5 and left 125 others injured; seven of whom suffered serious injuries. Earlier that day, the attacker had also murdered a woman in his house.

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[edit]Attack

The attack took place on 13 December 2011 at 12:33 local time (11:33 UTC) in Saint-Lambert Square, home to the town's courthouse. It was a busy day with many shoppers in the nearbyChristmas market.
Witnesses reported four explosions and gunfire. At first, it was believed that there were two or more assailants, who threw stun grenades into the courthouse while another hurled them at a bus shelter. The gunman then fired shots from the rooftop of a bakery shop, located across the square.[3] Police were on the scene quickly and sealed off the square.[7]
Amrani killed three people in the attack and wounded 125 others, seven seriously. After that, Amrani committed suicide by shooting himself with a revolver.[8] Two of the dead were teenage boys aged 15 and 17 and named Mehdi Belhadj and Pierre Gérouville. A 17-month-old boy, Gabriël Leblond, died later in a hospital.[5][9] A 20-year-old man was left in a critical state. A 75-year-old woman succumbed to her injuries two days after the attack[5][10].

[edit]Perpetrator

Nordine Amrani was born in Ixelles/Elsene in Brussels, Belgium on 15 November 1978. He was aFrench-speaking Belgian of Moroccan origin and a welder by trade.[11]
He grew up near Brussels, and was living with his fiancée, a care home nurse.[12] Orphaned early, he was raised in foster homes.[13][14]
Amrani had been released from prison in October 2010. He had been convicted to a 58-month (4 years, 10 months) sentence he received from a Liège court in 2008. The conviction was for possession of thousands of weapons parts, dozens of weapons, including a rocket launcher, assault and sniper rifles, as well as 2,800 cannabis plants, in the context of a criminal conspiracy (association de malfaiteurs). He also had convictions for handling stolen goods and sex offending. Police have failed to find any links to terrorist groups thus far.[12] On the day of the attack, Amrani had been summoned for an interview with the police to answer questions about a sexual abuse case.[13]
Before the attack, Amrani transferred money from his account to that of his girlfriend. On the morning of the attack, Amrani killed a 45-year-old woman in his apartment. The victim was working as a cleaner for Amrani's neighbour. He possibly lured her into his flat under the pretext of offering her work. After the murder, he hid her body in his shed, then left his flat for the city centre, equipped with a backpack containing the weapons.[15]

[edit]Reaction

[edit]Domestic

  • Recently appointed Prime Minister of Belgium Elio di Rupo visited the location of the attack later in the day and described the attack as "horrible". He added, "The whole country shares the pain of the families affected. We share the shock of the population."[16][17][18]
  • Willy Demeyer, the mayor of Liège, condemned the attack and said the attack had "sown sorrow in the heart of the city".[16]

[edit]International

  •  Australia: Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard offered condolences, stating: "On behalf of the Australian government and people, I extend the nation's deepest sympathies to the citizens of Liege for the shocking attack which took place overnight. Belgium is a good friend and close partner of Australia. Our thoughts are with the families of those who have lost loved ones and we wish those who have been injured a full and speedy recovery."[19]
  •  Estonia: President of Estonia Toomas Hendrik Ilves composed a letter to the King of the Belgians stating: "The peace of Christmas time has been disquieted by the grief and mourning that struck us after the tragic news. Our thoughts are with the next of kin of the victims and we wish a speedy recovery for the wounded. The incomprehensible evil that has struck us during the Christmas season forces us to search for reasons. However, this will not mean that we will close our societies to others as we all do now: openness and democracy are always stronger than anger and evil."[20]
  •  Luxembourg: The Luxembourger government expressed condolences.[21]
  •  Netherlands: Three Dutch ambulances were sent to Liege.[22]
  •  Singapore: Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Hsien Loong expressed condolences, stating: "On behalf of the people of Singapore, I would like to convey my deepest condolences to the families of the victims of these brutal and senseless attacks. Our thoughts also go out to the government and people of the Kingdom of Belgium during this difficult time."[23]
  •  United Kingdom: British Prime Minister David Cameron telephoned the Belgian Prime Minister, expressing condolences over the "appalling attacks."[24]

[edit]References

Portal iconBelgium portal
  1. ^ four deaths in the attack itself; one victim of the murder preceding the attack, plus the suicide of the attacker.
  2. ^ "Fusillade à Liège: quatre morts, dont l'auteur - RTBF Regions". RTBF. Retrieved 13 December 2011.
  3. ^ a b "Belgium grenade attack kills two". Telegraph.co.uk. 13 December 2011. Retrieved 13 December 2011.
  4. ^ "L'info sur RTBF - Régions". RTBF. 13 December 2011. Retrieved 13 December 2011.
  5. ^ a b c "Liège : 4 morts et des dizaines de blessés (live)" (in French). lesoir.be. Retrieved 13 December 2011.
  6. ^ e-TF1 (13 December 2011). "Quatre morts et 75 blessés dans une fusillade à Liège - Vidéo replay du journal televise : Le journal de 20h - TF1". Videos.tf1.fr. Retrieved 14 December 2011.
  7. ^ "Belgium attack: grenades thrown at bus-stop in Liège - live updates". Guardian.co.uk. 13 December 2011. Retrieved 13 December 2011.
  8. ^ "Vier doden en 64 gewonden bij bloedige aanslag Luik". Algemeen Dagblad. 13 December 2011. Retrieved 13 December 2011.
  9. ^ "Liege attack: Gunman kills three in Belgium". Matt Cole. BBC News, Liege. 13 December 2011. Retrieved 14 December 2011.
  10. ^ "Vijfde slachtoffer van schietpartij is overleden". deredactie.be. 15 December 2011. Retrieved 15 December 2011.
  11. ^ "Profile: Liege mass killer Nordine Amrani". BBC News. 14 December 2011. Retrieved 14 December 2011.
  12. ^ a b Liege maniac left 'I love you' note for his girl
  13. ^ a b Belgian Gunman, Long in Trouble With Law, Killed Before Rampage
  14. ^ Liege attacks: Belgian gunman Nordine Amrani had 'grudge against society'
  15. ^ "Liege attacks: body found at home of Belgium gunman". Telegraph.co.uk. 14 December 2011. Retrieved 14 December 2011.
  16. ^ a b "Liege attack: Belgian police search for gunman motive". BBC. 14 December 2011. Retrieved 14 December 2011.
  17. ^ "Vier doden na aanslag met granaten in centrum van Luik, 75 mensen gewond". De Morgen. 13 December 2011. Retrieved 13 December 2011.
  18. ^ "Liège : 4 morts et des dizaines de blessés (live)". lesoir.be. 13 December 2011. Retrieved 13 December 2011.
  19. ^ "Gillard offers condolences over shooting". ninemsn. 15 December 2011. Retrieved 15 December 2011.
  20. ^ "President Offers Condolences to Wounded Belgium | News | ERR". News. 14 December 2011. Retrieved 15 December 2011.
  21. ^ "Gunman leaves no clues to what sparked killings". The Sydney Morning Herald. 15 December 2011. Retrieved 15 December 2011.
  22. ^ "Nederlandse ambulances helpen in luik [Dutch ambulances assist in Liège]". binnenland.nieuws.nl. 15 December 2011. Retrieved 15 December 2011.
  23. ^ http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1171492/1/.html
  24. ^ Location Settings (15 December 2011). "Belgian gunman offered no explanation". News24. Retrieved 15 December 2011.


Liege attacks: Belgian gunman Nordine Amrani had 'grudge against society'

Belgian gunman Nordine Amrani launched his attack on Christmas shopping crowds in Leige's busy Place Saint Lambert because he knew that he was going to be sent back to prison and had a "grudge against society", his lawyers said on Wedesday.


Before carrying out the attack, Amrani then transferred cash to his fiancee's account with the words "I love you my love. Good luck."
His wife-to-be is a woman called Perrin Balon, who is a nurse for a home visits social care company outside Liege and who paid the bills on the warehouse where the cleaner's body was found. She is in hiding with her middle class family after being interviewed by police.
His family lawyer, Abdelhadi Amrani in Brussels, who is not related to the killer, said that he had grown up in foster homes after being orphaned at an early age.
"I remember a man deeply marked by loss of his parents. He lost his father and mother very early. He was marked by fate. I would add he was a very smart boy, gifted. Nordine often spoke of his desire to start a family. He was to be married in Liege with a nurse," she said.
Miss Amrani, the lawyer, dismissed any possible terrorist motives for the attack. "He did not feel at all Moroccan. He did not speak a word of Arabic and was not Muslim. What he said is that he felt a Belgian," she said. "He was crazy about weapons but as a collector. He felt he had not had much luck in life and felt unfairly treated by the courts. This was a 'ras-le-bol' of a tormented soul: estranged from justice, and against society."


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