They would look under their seat to make sure there was no bag left unattended.
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Rescuers race to evacuate one of the dozens of commuters who were injured when a bomb exploded in a subway train during rush hour inside the crowded Saint-Michel station along the Seine in Paris on July 25, 1995.
Counter-terrorism prosecutors said they had opened a preliminary investigation. “I think this is just a group hug”.
Last night, the usual Parisian reverie was replaced by chaos.
Police have said that at least 120 people were killed at the Bataclan concert hall in central Paris, only a few 200 metres (yards) from the former offices of Charlie Hebdo which were attacked by extremists in January. What I had actually heard was a suicide bomber blowing himself up outside the stadium several hundred yards and several levels below our seats.
“We are reminded in this time of tragedy that the bonds of liberté, égalite and fraternitéare not only values that the French people care so deeply about, but they are values that we share”.
A medic tends to a man November 13, 2013 in Paris, France. But his recommendation was probably not necessary. A gathering to celebrate a visiting friend has been canceled, as well as a lecture at the Sorbonne I planned to attend. The normally busy Eiffel Tower was closed. Players and spectators seemed confused, and eventually the bad realization swept through the stadium: Terror, for the second time this year, had returned to Paris. Parisian department stores are well-known for their delightful Christmas windows. I’m afraid there will be nothing delightful about this holiday season. This, too, will be disrupted.
A police officer is killed and a street sweeper injured in a shooting in southern Paris.
By definition, terrorism is meant to create a state of fear in the population. It was the deadliest attack in the country’s history. The temptation to turn to populist voices may be easy. We were expecting something like (the 2008 attacks in) Mumbai – a big place taken over and people shot one by one.
France was already in a foul temper, with the economy stagnant and far-right politicians stoking anti-immigrant sentiment, especially Marine Le Pen, leader of the National Front.
What can be done, then? The shooting continued for three days.
“Though shocking, the attacks are not completely surprising”, risk analysts Stratfor said in a note to clients. Someone carrying a gun might not have stopped the attacks, but the death toll might have been reduced.
People place flowers at a makeshift memorial outside the Consulate General of France in San Francisco. “Charlie Hebdo was a target, but they were just starting out in life”, he said.
The French authorities, sharply criticised for failing to monitor the home-grown extremists who had been known to security officials, have vowed to tighten scrutiny of suspected terror cells and protect the country.
It has been reported that supporters of the Islamic State have been cheering on Twitter about how “Paris is burning”. After all, Paris’ motto is “Fluctuat nec mergitur”, or “tossed by the waves but not sinking”.
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It can no longer be denied that France is in the throes of the global Islamic insurgency.
