Muslim leaders deny burial for French priest killer

New York, July 31 : Muslim community leaders have refused to bury Adel Kermiche (19), one of the terrorists who killed a Catholic priest in northern France.

Mohammed Karabila, president of the local Muslim cultural association, said that neither he nor the local Imam would take part in any burial service for Kermiche, who had pledged allegiance to ISIS, reports CNN.

Kermiche was one of two men who took five people hostage during the morning Mass on Tuesday at a Catholic church in Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray, before forcing the priest to his knees and slitting his throat.

Reverend Jacques Hamel, 86, was stabbed in the chest before he was killed at the foot of the altar. Kermiche was known to authorities as his trial was pending and he even wore an electronic monitoring during the terror act, according to French prosecutor Francois Molins.

Kermiche and his accomplice Abdel-Malik Petitjean (19) were shot dead by the police as they ran from the church.

The mayor's office will make the final decision on whether Kermiche can be buried in the town..

Source: ANI