The three women arrested, aged 39, 23 and 19, were “radicalised and fanatical”, authorities said, and “likely preparing new violent and imminent [terrorist] actions”. “It all happened very fast”.
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Two brothers and their girlfriends have also been arrested on Wednesday and Thursday.
PARIS (AP) – A failed attack involving a auto loaded with gas canisters near Notre Dame Cathedral was spearheaded a group of women that included a 19-year-old whose written pledge of allegiance to the Islamic State group was found by police, a security official said Friday.
Besides the three women, officials said a 27-year-old man and a 26-year-old woman were detained on Wednesday south of Paris and a second couple, a 34-year-old man and a 29-year-old woman, was detained in the same case on Tuesday. The auto had no number plates and its hazard lights were flashing.
A French police officer stands guard outside Notre Dame cathedral in Paris earlier this year.
Sunday’s discovery of the Peugeot 607 laden with seven gas cylinders triggered a terrorism investigation and revived fears about further attacks in a country where Islamist militants have killed more than 230 people since January 2015.
The vehicle also contained three jerry cans of diesel and was found with its hazard lights on.
No one was inside, but police found five canisters filled with gas in the boot and an empty canister on one of the seats.
The auto loaded with gas canisters belonged to Madani’s father, who flagged her to police on Sunday 14 hours after the vehicle was discovered.
Speaking on Thursday, President Francois Hollande referred to attack plots that have been foiled “in recent days”, without elaborating.
This year alone, 260 arrests have been made in France in relation to terrorist activities, Cazeneuve said. However, documents in Arabic were found in the auto.
“There was nobody in the vehicle, and the cannisters were not connected to any detonator or explosives”.
IS said the truck was driven by one of its followers.
The head of France’s DGSI domestic intelligence service, Patrick Calvar, warned in May of a “new form of attack” in which explosive devices would be left near sites that attract large crowds.
French security services are particularly anxious about the danger posed by extremists returning from Syria after fighting with Daesh forces.
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Scores of religiously radicalized people of French and other nationalities are in Syria and Iraq fighting for Islamic State.
