Readout of Mayor de Blasio's Meeting with Lassana Bathily

June 12, 2015

Today, Mayor de Blasio met with Lassana Bathily, an employee of the Parisian kosher market Hyper Cacher, who risked his own life to save a number of people when the store was the target of a terror attack in January 2015. Mr. Bathily is Muslim, and immigrated to France from Mali. The Mayor and Mr. Bathily, who was accompanied by the NYPD Muslim Officers Society, discussed the local and international impact of the terror attacks and the need to combat hate and terror of all forms. The Mayor praised Mr. Bathily's actions on January 9, which included ushering patrons into a basement to protect them from the gunman and giving key information to law enforcement during the attacks, allowing police to intervene without putting hostages in further danger. The Mayor thanked Lassana Bathily for his actions, and Mr. Bathily expressed how much he has enjoyed his time in New York City, and discussed his efforts to help the people of Mali. Later in the day, the Mayor presented a proclamation to Mr. Bathily honoring his heroism on that tragic occasion while visiting a mosque in Brighton Beach.