Terrorism
“Nice terror attack: 84 killed. State of emergency extended by 3 months”: this is the headline on the front page of the French daily “Le Monde”. “The death toll rises to 84”, insists “Le Figaro”. And the local newspaper “Nice Matin” highlights that the terrorist attack took place on 14 July, France’s national day. Yesterday evening, just before 11pm, during Bastille Day celebrations, a 4-tonne white lorry rammed into the police checkpoint, entering the pedestrian zone of the seafront Promenade des Anglais in Nice, running over passers-by. The driver was eventually shot dead by police, after he had killed 84 people and injured hundreds; 20 of them are still in hospital in critical conditions. The lorry rammed the crowd over a distance of 2 kilometres before being stopped as people ran for their lives in panic. Little is known about the attacker, a French-Tunisian man, who was shot dead by police forces who are now investigating the case and seeking out any accomplices involved. French President François Hollande has spoken to the nation announcing a three-month extension of the state of Emergency.
