Paris - On Monday night, the brilliant French-Moroccan photographer Leila Alaoui died from her injuries after she was shot during Friday’s night al-Qaeda terrorist attack in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
Paris – On Monday night, the brilliant French-Moroccan photographer Leila Alaoui died from her injuries after she was shot during Friday’s night al-Qaeda terrorist attack in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
Fascinated by the rich ethnic and cultural diversity of her native country, the young artist tackled taboos in art by exploring themes such as racism, migration and cultural identity. She was always fighting to give life to those forgotten by society, to homeless people, to migrants, deploying one weapon: photography.
What a loss! Leila Alaoui was not only beautiful, but talented and strong. It was sheer commitment that helped her achieve success and become one of the most promising photographers of her generation.
Leila Alaoui was one of four French nationals who died in the attacks. While everyone in Morocco was paying tribute to her on Monday night, the French government has been harshly criticized. Despite Leila’s brother call to the consul of the French Embassy of Ouagadougou on Sunday morning, the French authorities visited her at the hospital on Monday afternoon around 2 or 3 p.m.
Furthermore, it was only on Tuesday that the French culture minister, Fleur Pellerin, confirmed her death on Twitter. Just after, in a statement released by the Élysée, French President François Hollande expressed condolences and solidarity with Leila’s family. In a joint statement Jean-Luc Monterosso, Director of the Maison Européenne de la Photographie in Paris and Jack Lang, a former French culture minister currently president of the Institut du Monde arabe, paid tribute to the young artist as “a radiant artist correspondent of peace.”
On Tuesday, the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that the general inspection of the Ministry will investigate and report on the circumstances of Mrs. Alaoui’s Death. The French medical and psychological teams will assist Leila’s family, said the official representative of the French Foreign Ministry Romain Nadal. The French Government and the deputies of the French National assembly observed a minute of silence Tuesday in remembrance of the victims of the Ouagadougou terror attacks.
The Arab world has lost yet another tremendous talent… May your soul rest in Peace Leila Alaoui. You are and always will be an inspiration for the coming generations of photographers.
