More than a million people took to the streets of Paris on Sunday to commemorate the victims of the terrorist attack on the Charlie Hebdo satirical weekly and express support for the ideals of a free society. The “republican march” was also attended by several European and world leaders, including Croatian PM Zoran Milanović as well as foreign and interior ministers Vesna Pusić and Ranko Ostojić.
Ahead of the march, French President Francois Hollande received at least 56 heads of state, government and international institutions. After brief talks at the Élysée Palace, they boarded a bus to the Voltaire Square, where they symbolically marched several hundred meters, spearheading the crowd. The marchers shouted “Freedom!” and “We’re all Charlie!"” and sang the French hymn.
According to the organizers’ estimates, between 1.3 and 1.5 million people rallied in the streets of Paris on Sunday afternoon. More than 5500 officers and soldiers were deployed on Sunday in Paris and its suburbs, 2200 of which secured the historical march commemorating the Jihad attach victims.