U.S. President Barack Obama responded to the Nice attack Friday, urging unity in the wake of the grisly truck attack that left at least 84 dead in France and warning that Americans “cannot let ourselves be divided” by the attacks.
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Late on Thursday, a Tunisian named as Mohamed Lahouaiej-Bouhlel rammed a truck into a Bastille Day crowd in the coastal French city after a firework display.
“And they were struck, struck to death, to satisfy the cruelty of an individual and perhaps of a group”, he said after visiting a hospital that treated victims.
The statement did not name the attacker, and the language implied that he may have acted independently.
According to authorities, no Canadian citizens are believed to have been killed in the attacks.
The video shows multiple casualties the street on Promenade des Anglais after a truck smashed into a crowd.
The truck accelerated as it approached the crowd that had gathered on a seaside promenade to celebrate the national holiday. Bouhlel grabbed another gun and fired at cops who closed in one him, but police killed the terrorist before he could harm anyone else, the Independent reported.
Of the 202 injured, a Paris prosecutor confirmed that 52 remain in critical condition, including 25 on life support. The driver had a history of petty crime, including burglary and theft, but had reportedly never raised any flags among the intelligence community.
He said everyone ran, many into a restaurant.
Sylvie Toffin, a press officer with the local prefecture, said that the truck “hit several people on a long trip” down the sidewalk near Nice’s Palais de la Mediterranee, a building that fronts the beach.
President François Hollande declared three days of mourning after the assault, as the shell-shocked country found itself again mourning its dead.
Hollande also said he would activate those who had once served in the military and the gendarmerie to help relieve police and active-duty soldiers.
“Horrors like the Nice terror attack are a reminder to enjoy family, friends and life”, Jack says.
For the French, this year’s Bastille Day was meant to be a time of solidarity and celebration.
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He said that the day is a “symbol of liberty”, and that “human rights are denied by fanatics and France is quite clearly their target”. The president of the Provence Alpes Cote d’Azur regional council, Christian Estrosi, said in a message posted to Twitter that dozens of people appear to have been killed. The state of emergency was due to expire later this month.
