Profile of Mohammed Merah, Toulouse shooting suspect

Merah describes himself as a mujahedeen (holy warrior) and member of Al Qaeda, French Interior Minister Claude Guant told the press this morning. The suspect reportedly told police that he wanted to avenge the deaths of Palestinian children and punish the French military for its operations overseas. He has links to strict Salafi Islam and jihadist movements, Guant said.

Merah had only recently become “politicized,” his lawyer Marie-Christine telin told Le Point. He continued to frequent nightclubs and did not consistently wear the beard traditional for devout male Muslims, other asociates told the magazine.

A man claiming to be the Toulouse shooter last night called state-owned TV network France 24 in an apparent attempt to explain himself. According to the journalist who spoke to the caller – who may or may not have Merah – he was calm, eloquent and polite. He said he had long planned the attacks as a protest against France’s ban on the burqa, its military intervention, and “our little Palestinian brothers and sisters.”

The caller told France 24 that he saw only two possible outcomes: either he would serve a prison term “with my head held high,” or he would die “with a smile on my face.”