A man wanted in connection with a deadly 1982 attack on a Jewish restaurant in Paris has been detained by Palestinian authorities in the occupied West Bank, French investigators said.
The detainee has been identified as Mahmoud Khader Abed Adra, who is also known by the name Hicham Harb. He is suspected of directing the gun and grenade assault on the Jo Goldenberg restaurant on Rue des Rosiers in August 1982, an attack that killed six people and injured around 20 others.
France's National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor's Office (PNAT) said it had been informed by Interpol that Palestinian authorities had carried out the arrest under a 2015 international warrant. Adra faces charges of terrorist murder and attempted terrorist murder.
President Emmanuel Macron welcomed the arrest on social media, saying he appreciated the "excellent co-operation" between France and the Palestinian Authority and adding, "We are working together to ensure his swift extradition,"
French officials indicated an extradition request would be pursued. France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said the arrest had been made possible by President Macron's decision to recognise an independent Palestinian state, which ministers say enables formal extradition procedures.
Alongside France, countries including Australia, Belgium, the UK Government and Canada were preparing to formally recognise a Palestinian state ahead of the annual UN General Assembly leaders' meeting -- a move that has prompted strong reactions from Israel and many within France's Jewish community.
The Jo Goldenberg assault took place on 9 August 1982 in the largely Jewish Marais district. To date, no one has been held criminally responsible for the attack.
In July, French judges ordered that six people, including Adra, be put on trial for murder and assault in a special terrorism court for the historic incident. One suspect, Abu Zayed, has been extradited to France from Norway and is in custody. Three other individuals remain at large and are believed to be in Jordan and the West Bank.
A trial is expected to begin early next year. Prosecutors say three of the six defendants will be present for the court hearings, while the other three will be tried in absentia.
Yohann Taïeb, a spokesman for some of the victims of the attack, said it was a "significant step" and urged Macron to secure Adra's extradition "as quickly as possible".
French investigators believe Adra was linked to the Abu Nidal group, a breakaway Palestinian faction active in the 1970s and 1980s. The group split from Yasser Arafat's Palestine Liberation Organisation and has been blamed for a series of violent attacks around the world that killed at least 900 people.
The PNAT has declined to comment on the precise circumstances or timing of the arrest. French authorities say they will move to secure extradition and proceed with the long-delayed trial process now that a suspect has been detained.
President Macron reiterated France's stance on accountability in his social media remarks: "France does not forget. It always enforces and punishes. Justice will prevail."