Here is something I suppose nobody heard outside of France: The killers of the Charlie Hebdo attack gave an interview (by phone with the press) a few hours before being killed. They stated, that the attack was a retaliation for the thousand of civilian dead in Syria. They stated, that they didn't strike blindly. They indeed could have killed far more people during their escape. They stated that they didn't kill any women while European/US soldiers do kill child and women in Syria. The interview aired one day, then faded very quickly from the media (I never heard it again since the following day).
Free-speech commemoration and mourning of french caricaturist was the hot topic of the moment, and who want to hear justifications from a bunch of assassin.
Like anyone, I really don't care for Syria. Don't even know what is happening there. So I guess the Charlie Hebdo victims really died in vain: the killers could not bring some kind awareness to the Syrian massacre.