Palestinian authorities have arrested a key suspect in an antisemitic attack on a Jewish restaurant in Paris which left six people dead in Paris in 1982, French prosecutors said on Friday.
The announcement comes as France gears up to formally recognise Palestine's statehood at the United Nations General Assembly on Monday.
The office of the France anti-terror prosecutor said it was informed by Interpol of the arrest of 70-year-old Hicham Harb, welcoming "this major procedural breakthrough" and thanking the Palestinian authorities for their cooperation.
President Emmanuel Macron hailed the announcement, saying the suspect had been arrested in the West Bank.
"I welcome the excellent cooperation with the Palestinian Authority," he said on X. "We are working together to ensure his swift extradition."
"This is another step forward for justice and truth. My thoughts are with all the families who have endured the pain of waiting for so long."
Harb is suspected of leading the attackers in the gun assault on the Jo Goldenberg restaurant in Paris's Marais district, a historically Jewish quarter.
Harb, who has been the subject of an international arrest warrant for 10 years, is one of six men referred to the Special Assize Court in Paris in July over the attack.
The attack on August 9, 1982, which left six people dead and 22 injured, was blamed on the Abu Nidal Organisation, a splinter group of the militant Palestinian Fatah group.
The attack on the restaurant began around midday when a grenade was tossed into the dining room.
Men then entered the restaurant, which had around 50 customers inside, and opened fire with "WZ-63" Polish-made machine guns. They also shot at passers-by as they escaped.
With AFP
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