Hicham Harb, a 70-year-old suspect long sought in connection with the 1982 attack on the Jo Goldenberg restaurant in Paris, has been arrested in the occupied West Bank, authorities said. French President Emmanuel Macron hailed the detention, crediting “excellent cooperation” with the Palestinian Authority.
Harb is accused of overseeing the militants who stormed the restaurant on Rue des Rosiers, in Paris’s Jewish quarter, killing six people and wounding 22. The assault—one of modern France’s most notorious antisemitic attacks—underscored the international reach of Palestinian militant networks at the time and has remained a symbol of unresolved trauma for victims and the broader community.
According to officials, Harb was detained under a 2015 international arrest warrant linked to the case. In July, French investigative judges formally indicted him on counts of murder and attempted murder related to the attack, and referred several suspects to trial. Harb is the first among the group to be apprehended.
French prosecutors are expected to pursue extradition so Harb can face justice in Paris. Victims’ advocates welcomed the arrest as a significant step forward in a decades-long quest for accountability, while officials cautioned that judicial proceedings—including potential extradition hearings—could take time.
The Jo Goldenberg attack has been the subject of multiple investigative efforts over the years, with warrants issued as new evidence emerged. Harb’s arrest raises hopes that a case that has eluded closure for more than four decades may finally move toward resolution.
