European leaders, Canada’s Blaney to show solidarity at Paris attacks rally Sunday

European leaders will make an extraordinary show of support for France by joining a mass rally in Paris Sunday, amid a wave of solidarity following the bloody end to the Charlie Hebdo attacks. Global outrage and offers of assistance poured in after French police killed militant gunmen in two sieges in the Paris region, and Prime Minister Stephen Harper pledged Friday to work more closely with France and its president, Francois Hollande,  to stamp out the threat of terrorism. In a telephone conversation, “the two leaders condemned the attacks and spoke of the importance of cooperating to counter the scourge of extremism and terrorism,” Harper’s office said in a statement. The horror of the Paris attack was so universal that even foes of the west North Korea and Cuba sent condolences, while bitter enemies Israel and Iran were at least united in their condemnation of the slaughter. The latest attacks prompted vigils in several cities around the world to declare “Je suis Charlie” in a show of support for free speech, while the hashtag #JeSuisCharlie has been tweeted more than five million times. The global reaction in some ways mirrors the outpouring of support after the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States, when French newspaper “Le Monde” announced on its front page “Today, we are all Americans.”

I want the people of France to know that the United States stands with you today, stands with you tomorrow.

U.S. President Barack Obama, describing France as America’s “oldest ally”

Prime ministers David Cameron and Mariano Rajoy of Britain and Spain, whose countries have suffered major terror attacks in the past decade, were among the first to say they would attend. The leaders of Germany, Italy, Belgium, Portugal, Poland, Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Ukraine also said they would attend, while Public Safety Minister Steven Blaney will be there to represent Canada. French police on Friday stormed a print works north of Paris where the two brothers who attacked Charlie Hebdo were holed up, killing both in a hail of automatic fire. The attack Wednesday on the magazine, which has published cartoons of the prophet Mohammed, left 12 dead. Heavily armed police also raided a kosher supemarket where an alleged associate of the brothers had taken hostages, killing the gunman. Four hostages were found dead, but others were rescued.

"Through their shameful, heinous, inhumane and cruel words and acts, (these groups) have offended the prophet, religion… the holy book and the Muslim people more than any other enemy.

Hassan Nasrallah, chief of the Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah

World JeSuisCharlie