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ISFrance is shocked by a new knife attack: A suspected Islamist killed three people with a knife Thursday in the largest church in Nice, police said. At least one victim suffered a throat cut. Mayor Christian Estrosi said the arrested alleged perpetrator had repeatedly shouted “Allahu Akbar” (“God is great”).
The French anti-terrorism prosecutor has withdrawn the investigation into himself. France has declared the highest level of terrorist alert. It applies nationally, as Prime Minister Jean Castex announced in Paris.
“All the citizens of Nice are shocked and horrified,” said Mayor Estrosi. According to his account, “everything points to a terrorist attack”. The Counter-Terrorism Prosecutor’s Office is investigating “murder and attempted murder in connection with a terrorist act”.
A woman was beheaded, French media reported
According to police sources, three days before All Saints’ Day three people were killed in the attack on the Notre-Dame basilica. A woman and a man died in the church in the center of the village. A third victim managed to escape to a bar, but then succumbed to his injuries. Police said at least one victim had a throat cut. According to some French media reports, the murdered woman was beheaded.
This is also indicated by the statements of Mayor Estrosi: he said that the author proceeded in a similar way to the murder of the history teacher Samuel Paty about two weeks ago. The teacher was beheaded by a suspected Islamist near Paris after showing Muhammad cartoons in class. Estrosi pointed out that France had to declare war on “Islamofascism”.
The attack with the knife took place around 9 am. At that time, numerous people were out shopping in central Nice, as a new national crown closure was due to take effect across France at midnight.
“Everyone ran away, there were shots,” said a waiter who works in a bar near the cathedral. “There will be deaths,” a woman warned. The injured perpetrator was taken to hospital, according to police.
There was also an alleged Islamist attack on passers-by near the city of Avignon in southern France. A man threatened several people with a gun in the town of Montfavet, police said and confirmed corresponding media reports. The police shot the man. Radio station Europe 1 reported that the attacker shouted “Allahu akbar”. No further details were initially provided.
Pope Francis prays for the victims
The Catholic Church in France was appalled by the “unspeakable act” in Nice. Christians must not “become symbolic sacrifices”, asked the Bishops’ Conference. Pope Francis prayed for the victims, their families and for an end to the violence, a Vatican spokesman said.
“In a place of peace and prayer, innocent people were cruelly wounded and murdered from behind,” Evangelical Church Germany (EKD) President Heinrich Bedford-Strohm said on Facebook. The president of the German Bishops’ Conference, Georg Bätzing, said he was horrified: “The believers, gathered for prayer in a church, were victims of an incredible act of violence”.
Merkel and Rutte show solidarity
Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) was “deeply shocked by the cruel murders in a church” in Nice. “My thoughts are with the relatives of the murdered and wounded,” Merkel said, according to her spokesperson Steffen Seibert in Berlin. “The French nation has shown solidarity with Germany in these difficult hours,” added the chancellor.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte also assured France of his support. “We tell our French friends: you are not alone in the fight against extremism. The Netherlands are by your side, ”the Prime Minister said on Twitter. For the second time in a short time, France was frightened “by a cruel act of terror”, explained Rutte.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry also strongly condemned the knife attack, despite Franco-Turkish tensions. There is nothing to justify the violence and killing of people, the Turkish foreign ministry said. People who have carried out such brutal attacks in such a holy place would have no religious, humanitarian or moral values. One stands in solidarity with the French people against terror and violence, he said.
Macron visits the crime scene that afternoon
French President Emmanuel Macron went to Nice in the afternoon after a meeting of the Paris crisis team to get an idea of the situation. He will be accompanied by Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin, Justice Minister Éric Dupond-Moretti and Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor Jean-François Ricard, he said Thursday from Elysée circles. Macron wanted to speak to the security forces and the mayor of Nice, Christian Estrosi, on the spot.
In some Muslim countries in recent days there have been threats and calls for a boycott of France. The protests were triggered by Macron’s remarks at the memorial ceremony for the slain teacher. The head of state has announced that he will stick to the cartoons of Muhammad in the name of freedom of expression.
The alleged attack stirs up terrible memories of three acts in French: in addition to the murder of the history teacher, this is the bloody attack in Nice in 2016, in which an Islamist rushed into a crowd in a truck on the national holiday French, killing 86 people and injuring hundreds. .
Less than two weeks later, two men killed Catholic priest Jacques Hamel while serving in the northern French city of Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray. The perpetrators subsequently killed by the police claimed responsibility for the jihadist militia of the Islamic State (IS).
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