French authorities have detained two more people in the investigation into the Bastille Day truck attack on the Mediterranean city of Nice that killed at least 84 people.
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He was killed by police after ramming his truck through crowds on Nice’s famed seafront after a holiday fireworks display Thursday night.
French prime minister Manuel Valls said IS was encouraging people not on the radar of security services, such as Bouhlel, to carry out attacks. With France still reeling from the attacks and questions being asked about the government’s ability to protect its citizens, the interior minister, Bernard Cazeneuve, appealed for young volunteers to join security service reserves.
The couple is suspected of supplying 7.65 mm automatic pistol to Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel, the truck driver who rammed his vehicle into people celebrating Bastille Day in the city.
Lahouaiej-Bouhlel fired at police who sprayed his rampaging truck with gunfire, eventually killing him.
The statement came from the group’s official radio bulletin al-Bayan, following a statement released by the Amaq media agency, which often distributes news on the Islamic State’s behalf.
According to officials, there were 30,000 people on the promenade at the time of the attack.
Their arrests follow the detention of five other people since the tragedy, including Bouhlel’s estranged wife.
Cazeneuve also said this type of attack “showed the extreme difficulty of the fight against terrorism”. Authorities said 85 people were still hospitalized, with 18 of them in critical condition.
The victims are both residents of Nice as well as tourists, including two Americans – a father and his 11-year-old son who were visiting from Texas.
The attack was the third major terror strike on France in 18 months, and Cazeneuve hit out at opposition politicians who have fiercely criticised the government for not doing enough to stop the bloodshed.
An Albanian couple in Nice were arrested Sunday over the attack and were being held alongside four others.
The Islamic State has made the first claim of responsibility for the attack on Nice that took 84 lives.
The 31-year-old zigzagged through the crowd in a bid to cause maximum casualties and was shot dead by police after he pulled out a gun and opened fire.
France is observing three days of national mourning in homage to the victims.
“Are you defending him?” the man said, incredulously.
Many families are angry that they couldn’t find information about missing loved ones.
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“Even when Daesh is not the organiser, Daesh breathes life into the terrorist spirit that we are fighting”, he said, using an Arabic name for IS.
