A truck drove on to the sidewalk and plowed through a crowd of Bastille Day revelers who’d gathered to watch fireworks in the French resort city of Nice late Thursday in what some officials and eyewitnesses described as a deliberate attack. “It was at that moment that the police were able to stop the terrorist”. Now, officers are searching his home in L’Abattoir neighborhood of the city.
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The driver of the vehicle was killed by French police after an apparent exchange of gunshots.
A Texas father and son are among the dead, according to family and friends.
The attack killed at least 84 people, including children.
Mr Hollande led a wave of condemnation from world leaders, saying: “France has been hit by a tragedy once again”.
France’s ambassador to the United States, Gerard Araud, characterized the events in Nice as a “terrorist attack”. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. Attacks are prepared with accomplices, ‘ he said.
The attack, which has been classified by French authorities as being of terrorist nature, occurred when a lorry rammed into a crowd celebrating the national holiday of France – Bastille Day.
The local newspaper Nice-Matin and French broadcaster BFMTV reported that the attacker is a 31-year-old local resident with dual French-Tunisian nationality, while citing security sources who said an ID card had been found inside the truck.
“A person jumped on to the truck to try to stop it”, Eric Ciotti told Europe 1 radio.
Police shot and killed the driver, who has not yet been publicly identified. “More info to come”, Christian Estrosi, president of the Nice Cote d’Azur region, said in a translated tweet. A photograph also showed the front of the truck riddled with bullet holes and badly damaged, with burst tyres.
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The government had called up operational reserves to help support gendarme and police forces, especially to assist in controlling borders.
Staff at Littlehampton fire station said: “Our thoughts are with those affected by the horrific attack in Nice & our emergency service colleagues at the scene #PrayForNice #solidarity”.
Eighty were killed, a French interior minister.
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The Islamic State group has repeatedly singled out France as a prime target for its military actions against the group in Iraq and Syria, and hundreds of militants have left France to go and fight in its ranks.
