Saturday, November 15, 2014

Canadian university professor Hassan Diab extradited to France on charges of first degree murder

(TIME) A Canadian university professor has been extradited to France and charged with first-degree murder for his alleged role in a deadly 1980 bombing outside a synagogue in Paris.

Hassan Diab landed at Charles De Gaulle airport in Paris on Saturday morning, the BBC reports, and was transferred to a Paris courthouse to face charges.

Diab, who was born in Lebanon, is the main suspect in the 1980 Rue Copernic bombing which killed four people and injured dozens. Diab fought for six years to remain in Canada until the Canadian Supreme Court approved his extradition on Thursday.

The 60-year-old sociology professor said his failed bid was “a very sad day for me, my family and supporters, and the state of extradition law in Canada.”

Diab will be presumed innocent until proven guilty, the French embassy in Ottawa said.