Accessibility links

Breaking News

Slain Suspect In Paris Terrorist Attack 'Born In Chechnya'


Forensic officers and French police stand in Monsigny Street in Paris after a man armed with a knife was shot dead by police in Paris on May 12.
Forensic officers and French police stand in Monsigny Street in Paris after a man armed with a knife was shot dead by police in Paris on May 12.

French judicial sources say the man suspected of carrying out a deadly knife attack in Paris during the weekend was a French citizen who was born in Russia's Chechnya region in 1997.

Officials did not immediately provide further information about the identity of the suspect, who was shot dead by police after killing a 29-year-old man and injuring four others on May 12 in a neighborhood near the Opera Garnier.

But authorities said on May 13 that both the father and mother of the slain suspect have been taken into custody for questioning as part of a terrorism investigation into the attack.

Meanwhile, the French interior minister was holding a special security meeting on May 13 to address the attack.

The Islamic State (IS) militant group on May 12 claimed through its Amaq news agency that the suspect was one of its "soldiers."

Police said two of the injured were "seriously wounded," while the other two were "slightly" hurt.

After the attack, French President Emmanuel Macron said that “France once again pays the price of blood” and that the country would not cede to "enemies of freedom."

Paris prosecutor Francois Molins said counterterrorism authorities were investing the attack, adding that witnesses had reported the suspect shouted "Allahu Akbar" or "God is Greatest" in Arabic.

French cities have been targeted in recent years by a series of terror-related attacks -- from mass-killings to smaller, but deadly attacks.

Based on reporting by Reuters, AFP, dpa, and the BBC

XS
SM
MD
LG