Thu 29 October 2020:
French police on Thursday morning said three people had been killed in a knife attack in the city of Nice, with several others injured.
Nice Mayor Christian Estrosi said the suspect behind the attack had been arrested. Estrosi said it appeared that the incident had been a terrorist attack on the city’s Basilica of Notre-Dame.
Je suis sur place avec la @PoliceNat06 et la @pmdenice qui a interpellé l’auteur de l’attaque. Je confirme que tout laisse supposer à un attentat terroriste au sein de la basilique Notre-Dame de #Nice06. pic.twitter.com/VmpDqRwzB1
— Christian Estrosi (@cestrosi) October 29, 2020
“Nice: a police operation is in progress. Avoid the area and follow the instructions,” French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin wrote on Twitter.
The mayor of Nice, Christian Estrosi, visited the scene of the incident.
“I confirm that everything suggests a terrorist attack in the Notre-Dame Basilica,” he tweeted.
President Emmanuel Macron was heading to the city, while Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin held a crisis meeting as he warned people to avoid the site of the attack.
A representative of the French Council for the Muslim Faith condemned the attack.
“As a sign of mourning and solidarity with the victims and their loved ones, I call on all Muslims in France to cancel all the celebrations of the holiday of Mawlid,” the spokesman said.
Jean-Luc Melenchon, leader of the left-wing France Insoumise party, tweeted: “Thoughts of compassion for the victims of the attack in #Nice.”
Anne Hidalgo, the left-wing mayor of Paris, said: “My first thoughts go to the victims and their loved ones affected by this horrible attack. The people of Nice, as well as it’s mayor @cestrosi, can count on support from the city of Paris.”
But Marine Le Pen, a leading far-right figure, adopted a provocative tone, calling for the “eradication of Islamism from our soil”.
