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Suspect extradited after 44 years
French authorities have taken custody of a 72-year-old man accused of orchestrating the deadly 1982 grenade and gun assault on a Jewish restaurant in Paris. Mahmoud Khader Abed Adra, known as Hicham Harb, was extradited by the Palestinian National Authority on Thursday following a formal request from France's National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor's Office (PNAT) last September.
Attack details and casualties
The assault on Jo Goldenberg restaurant in the Marais district left six people dead and over 20 injured. Witnesses described attackers hurling a grenade into the crowded dining room before at least three gunmen opened fire with automatic weapons as patrons fled.
Judicial cooperation praised
President Emmanuel Macron commended the Palestinian Authority for facilitating the extradition, calling it "a tangible outcome" of France's diplomatic recognition of Palestine in September 2025. Harb was taken into custody immediately upon landing at Villacoublay air base outside Paris.
Long-delayed legal proceedings
France's Court of Cassation ruled last year that six suspects should stand trial, though three remain at large in the West Bank, Jordan, and Kuwait. Two other suspects are already in French custody: Norwegian citizen Abou Zayed, accused of participating in the shooting, and Hazza Taha, alleged to have concealed the weapons used in the attack.
"Abou Zayed had no involvement in the attack," his legal team stated.
Family and legal disputes
Harb's son, Bilal al-Adra, condemned the extradition as unlawful and lacking assurances of a fair trial. Meanwhile, a Paris court rejected an appeal to transfer the case from a special judicial panel to a civilian jury.
Political and historical context
The Rue des Rosiers attack was attributed to a Palestinian faction led by Abu Nidal, a militant who split from the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). Nidal's group was linked to nearly 900 deaths in the 1980s through bombings, hijackings, and assassinations.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, who met with victims' families last year, reaffirmed the government's commitment to pursuing justice: "In the face of anti-Semitism and terrorism, France neither forgets nor relents."
