The man who killed more than 80 people in Nice, France, on Bastille Day last week was “unbalanced and very violent”, but it’s still unclear whether he was supporting the Islamic State group, according to one French official.
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Ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy, who is competing in a November primary for the ticket to run as presidential candidate for France’s mainstream centre-right parties, said overnight that Hollande’s government had failed to do all it could.
“We are up against challenges and that of terrorism is without doubt one of the largest ones”, the French leader said.
The 37-year-old man is thought to have been the recipient of the message sent from the mobile phone of Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel 18 minutes before he plowed a 19-ton truck into holiday crowds, killing 84 people.
President Francois Hollande’s Socialist government, accused by political opponents of doing too little to avert the attack that killed 84 and hurt hundreds, also said it would step up strikes against Islamic State in its strongholds in Iraq and Syria.
Cazeneuve described the politicians as “shameful”.
The atmosphere on Nice’s sunny promenade complemented by the blue sea continued to resemble sullen normalcy, with bouquets and messages being left at several locations.
He went on to dismiss criticism of his response to the heightened terror level, saying that France was facing “a new kind of threat” that highlighted “the extreme difficulty of the anti-terrorism fight”.
The attack has hit tourism hard on the Cote d’Azur, where Nice – France’s second most-visited city after Paris – is situated.
“There is no zero risk”.
The killer fired a 7.65mm automatic handgun at police before they shot him dead on Thursday night.
“We can not exclude that an unbalanced and very violent individual, and it seems that his psychology demonstrates these traits, was at one time, in a rapid radicalisation, committed to this absolutely appalling crime”, Cazeneuve said on Monday (18 July).
From 1 July, Bouhlel had made internet searches for festivities in Nice and had driven the route of the attack two days prior to Bastille Day. Cazeneuve said 59 people were still hospitalized after Thursday’s attack, 29 of them in intensive care, out of 308 people injured overall.
In Nice, many people were still desperately waiting for news of their loved ones.
Pradal said the attack in Nice, which follows two mass killings by Islamic extremists in Paris past year, shows that his city represents a particular target for extremists because of its long history as a Mediterranean melting pot that is tolerant of all nationalities and religions.
At least 10 children were among the dead, as well as tourists from Ukraine, Switzerland, Germany, and a local Russian association said there were about 10 victims from Russia.
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Dozens of people remain in hospital after the attack.
