France commemorates the attack ten years after the murder of Jacques Hamel

Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray – 26 July 2026: This Sunday, France marks the tenth anniversary of the Islamist attack on Saint-Étienne Church in Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray near Rouen. A Mass for the murdered priest Jacques Hamel will be celebrated in the church. An address by Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu is scheduled to follow. François Hollande, who was president at the time of the attack, will also attend the ceremony.

Jacques Hamel was killed on 26 July 2016 during a church service in his parish. Two young Islamists entered the church, took several people hostage and murdered the 85-year-old priest. Churchgoer Guy Coponet was seriously injured. Police officers shot the two perpetrators shortly after the attack as they were leaving the building.

The murder came during a period of particularly intense jihadist violence in France. Less than two weeks earlier, an attacker had killed 86 people during Bastille Day celebrations in Nice. Yet the attack in Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray had an impact of its own: it targeted a Catholic clergyman and took place during Mass in a suburban parish – a setting of everyday religious practice.

The political response was shaped by concern that the series of attacks could further intensify social and religious divisions. Hollande described the act as a terrorist attack on the same day and called for national unity. Representatives of Muslim organizations condemned the murder; interfaith commemorative events were subsequently held in many places.

The judicial proceedings came before the Paris Special Assize Court in 2022. Three defendants received prison sentences of between eight and 13 years for their involvement in the terrorist network. Another suspect, regarded as an instigator and tried in absentia, was sentenced to life imprisonment. The trial focused primarily on supporters and contacts of the two attackers who had been killed.

For Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray, 26 July has since become a fixed date in the town’s commemorative calendar. A stele for Hamel was inaugurated as early as 2017 in the presence of President Emmanuel Macron. This year’s ceremony once again combines religious liturgy with state commemoration.

The participation of the sitting prime minister gives the tenth anniversary particular political significance. The ceremony recalls an act after which France strengthened the protection of religious sites while also grappling with social cohesion. In Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray, Hamel is remembered above all as the parish’s long-serving priest.