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France: French beheading suspect denies jihad motivation

Europe Linda Digby 17 Jul 2015 Print Email

The man being held in France under suspicion of beheading his boss and trying to blow up a chemicals plant has told investigators there was no religious motivation behind the attack, according to a source close to the inquiry. Yassin Salhi told investigators he was not a jihadist and repeated earlier statements that he committed the act outside the southeast city of Lyon on Friday after a row with his wife the day before and his boss a few days earlier. Examination of one of Salhi's phones revealed he had taken a picture of himself with the severed head before his arrest and sent the image to a number belonging to a French national last traced to the Islamic State stronghold of Raqqa in Syria. Friday's attack stirred new security fears in France. Prime Minister Manuel Valls said the threat facing France, a member of the international coalition fighting Islamic State in Iraq, has never been greater.