France has brought five people into custody after the attack, the AP said.
Advertisement
Islamic State on Saturday claimed that the man who carried out the attack was a “soldier” of the group but did not name Lahouaiej-Bouhlel.
The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has claimed credit for Thursday’s terror attack in Nice, France, saying it was carried out by a “soldier” of the group.
But when a truck driver drove at full speed into crowds on the Nice seafront during the Bastille Day fireworks display, killing 80 people and injuring hundreds more, it took nearly three hours for the instant alert to be issued by the app.
Though no group has claimed responsibility for the Nice attack, President Francois Hollande called it “undeniably terrorist in nature” and extended a state of emergency imposed after the Nov 13 assault on Paris nightspots that claimed 130 lives.
As authorities in France frantically search for clues that might indicate a network of supporters of the kind that emerged after the Paris attacks last November, what is known so far about Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel suggests a troubled, angry loner with little interest in Islam.
He said: “By anybody’s standards that would be considered grossly inadequate and might explain why no barrier was put up on the promenade”.
The new arrests came as French President Francois Hollande met with the head of the armed forces and ministers after calling a meeting of his top security advisors in Paris. At least 50 people are still in critical condition, and the toll is expected to rise.
The driver’s father has said that Bouhlel had received psychiatric treatment in the past.
French authorities and media have yet to produce any evidence that the killer, Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel, was radicalized. But, in a statement to reporters, Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve hinted that Bouhlel may have had a last-minute adoption of a more extremist worldview.
The suspected terrorist was given a suspended sentence in March following a violent altercation on the road, which involved him use a pallet as a weapon.
Video: Bastille Day Attack: Why Has France Been Targeted? “We have an individual who was not known to intelligence services”.
He is said to have pulled a gun from the cab of his lorry in the premeditated attack before being shot dead by police, with people fleeing into the sea in a bid to escape.
Many fled into the sea to escape the attack, with witnesses telling how people were “flying like bowling pins” as Bouhlel went on the rampage.
Within minutes the attack was over, with Bouhlel dead in a hail of police gunfire.
Advertisement
France is observing three days of national mourning in homage to the victims – although that hasn’t stopped politicians from sniping at each other over who bore responsibility for the failing to stop the attack.
