Yesterday marked the 102nd anniversary of the end of World War I when Germany and the allied countries signed a ceasefire to put an end to the war. The anniversary was celebrated by diplomats from France, Greece, Italy, the UK, and the US, all gathered at a non-Muslim cemetery in Jeddah, the second-largest city in Saudi Arabia when a suddenly improvised explosion attack took place injuring several people.
According to an eyewitness, the bomb caused panic because it took place when the French consul was delivering his speech at the ceremony. The consulate then issued a statement to urge all French nationals living in Saudi Arabia to “exercise discretion, and stay away from all gatherings and be cautious when moving around” following the attack.
Speculations are, the attack took place due to a man who stabbed three people at a church in southern France on the same day of the explosion. Also, the ongoing wave of protests in many parts of the Muslim world over French President Emmanuel Macron’s speech on defending the right to publish cartoons, including insulting caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed has increased the sense of hatred and anger.
However, investigations are still ongoing to find who’s behind the cowardly attack. It’s totally unacceptable, shameful, and entirely without justification to harm innocent people.