Its decision to publish new cartoons this week ridiculing its opponents in the Islamic world formed the backdrop for yet another attack Thursday in France, where three people were fatally attacked in a church.

Organizers said they had called the rally in a sign of support two weeks after a man with far-right connections fired shots in a mosque in the southwestern city of Bayonne, injuring two elderly men.

The number of jihadis to have returned to France included 217 adults and 54 minors, with some of them currently in detention, France's Interior Minister said.