Alexandre Bissonnette, who shot and killed six worshippers at a Quebec City mosque, in Quebec, Canada, three years ago has received a reduction in his sentence. Bissonnette will be eligible for parole in 25 years.

In a shocking move on Thursday, Quebec’s Court of Appeals said that the shooter had received a “cruel and unusual punishment”.

The Middle East Eye reports that Bissonnette had been originally served two life sentences without the possibility of parole for 40 years. But the appeals court said that this went against Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The justices wrote, “This nonsense cannot survive and constitutes, in itself, cruel and unusual punishment, degrading because of its absurd nature.”

31-year-old Bissonnette had in 2019 pleaded guilty to six counts of murder and six counts of attempted murder following the shooting at the Quebec Islamic Cultural Centre in January 2017.

He opened fire at the mosque shortly after evening prayers, killing six Muslim men and wounding 19 others. The Middle East Eye reports that the massacre sent shockwaves across Canada.  Prosecutors had originally called for Bissonnette to receive 150 years in prison – a sentence of 25-years for each person he killed. According to the MME, Superior Court Justice Francois Huot settled on 40 years without parole.

Boufeldja Benabdallah, one of the founders of the Quebec Islamic Cultural Centre said that reducing Bissonnette’s jail time would send a wrong message in respect of preventing future attacks. He said, “We’re not thinking of only ourselves but of all Quebec society.” Meanwhile, the Muslim Association of Canada tweeted: “Our hearts & prayers go out to the victims, families & friends who lost their loved ones in the Quebec City Mosque shooting. Today’s court decision deepened their wounds, inflamed a sense of injustice in the community, & sends message of selective justice.”

The Middle East Eye reports that the Quebec Court of Appeals’ ruling may have a lasting impact on future murder cases in Canada.

Umm Muhammed Umar