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Paris attacks: Security guard ‘stopped bomber from entering stadium’

A suicide bomber blows himself up inside the restaurant Comptoir Voltaire at 253 Boulevard Voltaire in the 11th district. There were seven airstrikes and at least three major explosions, according to the collective known as Raqqa is Being Slaughtered Silently, which has documented ISIS atrocities in the city.

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Former Real Madrid, Arsenal and Chelsea midfielder Lassana Diarra, who played for France in the friendly, said his cousin died in one of the shootings that took place in Paris. More than 350 people were wounded in the attacks, with 99 reportedly in critical condition.

State of emergency – 10:30 pm: French President Francois Hollande, immediately evacuated from the Stade de France, where he was watching the football match, goes to the interior ministry to monitor the situation. Iraqi intelligence sent a dispatch saying the group’s leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, had ordered an attack on coalition countries fighting against them in Iraq and Syria, as well as on Iran and Russian Federation, “through bombings or assassinations or hostage taking in the coming days”.

French police launched an global hunt for a Belgian-born man they believe helped organise the assaults with two of his brothers.

In the aftermath of the attacks, one of the killers involved has been identified as 20-year-old Bilal Hadfi.

The blast was soon followed by a second explosion outside the stadium, with a third happening at a nearby McDonald’s.

The attackers gunned down diners and revellers at the venues, killing at least 39 and sending shocks of terror through the neighourhoods.

Salah Abdeslam, 26, has been described as “dangerous”. My family and I are affected by what happened.

“We confirm that the (Syrian) passport holder came through the Greek island of Leros on October 3, where he was registered under European Union rules”, said the Greek minister for citizen protection, Nikos Toskas.

French authorities Saturday named the first attacker as 29-year-old Omar Ismail Mostefai, who was identified from a severed finger found at Bataclan concert hall, scene of the worst of the bloodshed. “Carnage… Dead bodies everywhere”, said the Parisian.

The Islamic State group said they carried out the attacks in revenge for French air strikes in Syria and threatened further violence in France “as long as it continues its Crusader campaign”. His son can’t sleep and Tulga, who came to France as a Kurdish refugee, says he doubts he will take the youngster to another match. The first suicide bomber attempted to gain access to the game but was stopped before detonating outside, a security guard said.

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Witnesses said the second vehicle, a black Seat, was used by gunmen who shot dozens of people in bars and restaurants in the hip Canal St Martin area of Paris. “I saw 25 to 30 people lying on the floor”, added Pearce. France was already part of a U.S.-led coalition conducting airstrikes on ISIS, and since Friday’s attacks, French officials have vowed to fight back.

Other View: Witness: Being in the Stade de France Attack was Scary. So is