UPDATE: Psaki has since tweeted that the attack “was an anti-semitic attack that took the lives of innocent people.”
State Department Spokesperson Jen Psaki refused to say if an attack on a kosher deli in France shortly after the Charlie Hebdo attacks was an anti-Jewish attack during Tuesday’s press briefing.
After Associated Press Reporter Matthew Lee asked “does the administration really believe that the victims of this attack were not singled out because they were of a particular faith?” Psaki responded “there were not all victims of one background or one nationality, so I think what they mean by that is, I don’t know that they spoke to the targeting of the grocery store, or that specifically, but the individuals who were impacted.”
Lee then followed-up, asking whether the kosher deli itself was targeted because it was a Jewish supermarket, Psaki said that the targeting of the store was a distinct issue from the identities of the victims. He then asked “does the administration believe that this was an anti-Jewish–or an attack on the Jewish community in Paris?” Psaki stated “I don’t think we’re going to speak on behalf of French authorities and what they believe was the situation at play here?”
The exchange concluded why Lee wondering “if a guy goes into Kosher market and starts shooting it up, he’s not looking for Buddhists is he?” Psaki re-iterated that there were non-Jewish victims. Lee again pressed on who the administration believed a person shooting a kosher deli would be targeting, and was told “I just don’t have more for you, Matt. It’s an issue for the French government to address.”
Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett