Security tight as France holds funeral of teacher slain by former student

Local residents attend the funeral ceremony for French schoolteacher Dominique Bernard broadcasted on a giant screen on the facade of the town hall in Arras, northern France, on October 19, 2023. AFP - DENIS CHARLET

The funeral of murdered French teacher Dominique Bernard was held on Thursday under heightened security in the northern town of Arras. President Emmanuel Macron attended the emotional ceremony paying tribute to Bernard, who was stabbed to death six days ago by a radicalised former student.

The funeral mass took place at the cathedral in Arras, where Bernard lived and taught French at the Gambetta-Carnot high school, where he was stabbed to death on 13 October.