ELIMINATED
- Full name: Mohammed Merah
- Pseudonym: N/a
- Alternatives: N/a
- Location: France, fmr Pakistan, fmr Afghanistan
- Affiliation: Garsallaoui’s Soldiers of the Caliphate [JaK-G], Aroud-Garsallaoui Network [AGN], Artigat and Toulouse Network [FAT]
Mohammed Merah (°1988) was an Algerian jihadi with French nationality who was behind the first in a series of Islamist attacks against France during the 2010s. The son of a convicted drug dealer who supported Algeria’s Islamists during the country’s civil war grew up in the immigrant-heavy Izards suburb of Toulouse.1 Merah was drawn to delinquency at a young age and had already racked up fifteen convictions for acts of violence, public disturbance and theft when he turned eighteen years old.2 In the mid-2000s, his brother Abdelkader became an adherent of radical Salafism and introduced him to his associates in the Artigat and Toulouse Network [FAT; Filière d’Artigat et Toulouse], including Olivier Corel, Fabien Clain and Sabri Essid.3 Merah was incarcerated between December 2007 and September 2009 for having robbed a woman at a bank.4 He began taking religion to heart, read the Qur’an and hung out with radical Muslim inmates during his imprisonment.5
Merah came out of prison as a devout Muslim but did not stay out of trouble. In 2010, he shouted slogans in support of al-Qa’ida and brandished a sword to threaten a family that had denounced him for having shown jihadi videos to a minor.6 A complaint by the victims was ignored. That same year, Merah traveled to Afghanistan where police arrested him during a traffic stop in Kandahar. He was handed over to the American army which promptly flew him back to France.7 In the summer of 2011, Merah journeyed to Pakistan’s tribal regions where he linked up with al-Qa’ida member Moezeddine Garsalaoui.8 Merah made clear that he wanted to carry out attacks in France and was given training and guidance by Garsalaoui and his associates.9 He returned to France in October 2011.10 Merah explained these trips as touristic excursions to the French security services which apparently took no further action against him.11
In early 2012, Merah readied himself to carry out attacks in France by meeting several influential jihadi operatives, including Mohammed Achamlane and the mysterious Abdelkader el-Farssaoui.12 On Mar. 11, 2012, he shot and killed a French soldier on a street in Toulouse. A few days later, Merah opened fire at other soldiers as they were withdrawing money from a bank in Montauban.13 On Mar. 19, he attacked a Jewish school in Toulouse, killing a teacher and three pupils.14 Merah was eliminated as security forces stormed his apartment following a siege three days later.15 He put up fierce resistance during the entire operation and injured three officers. In communications with police negotiators during the siege, Merah expressed pride in his actions but conveyed regret for not having killed more people.16 Garsallaoui’s al-Qa’ida-affiliated outfit, the Soldiers of the Caliphate [JaK; Jund al-Khilafa] later claimed responsibility for the attacks.17 Although the claim was initially dismissed, intelligence later validated it.
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