Thread: Louvre Shooting: Soldier Fires on Attacker Outside Paris Museum

Louvre Shooting: Soldier Fires on Attacker Outside Paris Museum

by MARK HANRAHAN

A soldier opened fire on an alleged attacker outside the world-famous Louvre museum in Paris, police said Friday.

France's interior ministry said on Twitter that the incident was "serious." The area was being evacuated.
Luc Poignant, a police union official, told BFM-TV that the soldier had been assaulted and that the area was being secured.

Paris' police chief told The Associated Press that the soldier fired five shots, and that the suspect had been seriously wounded.

He added that the man had been carrying two backpacks, but no explosives had been found.


The Louvre museum in Paris. De Agostini/Getty Images, file

Earlier, Reuters quoted a police source as saying the solider had wounded a man armed with a knife who was trying to enter the tourist attraction. A second police source told Reuters the man had been trying to get into the museum's underground shop with a suitcase. NBC News could not immediately independently confirm those accounts.

France has been under a state of emergency since the 2015 terrorist attacks in Paris that killed 130 people.
Soldiers on patrol are part of security measures that have beefed-up in the wake of attacks in the capital and in Nice.


Louvre Shooting: Soldier Fires on Attacker Outside Paris Museum

Very lengthy thorough article. Due to this, have posted some pictures but not all.
~~~

Machete-wielding man slumps to the ground after being shot in the stomach at the Louvre museum as he attacked French soldiers while screaming ‘Allahu Akbar’

By Dave Burke For Mailonline and Peter Allen In Paris for MailOnline
PUBLISHED: 04:24 EST, 3 February 2017 | UPDATED: 11:58 EST, 3 February 2017

A terror probe has been launched in Paris after a machete-wielding man was shot while attacking four soldiers outside the Louvre.

The suspect was shot five times in the stomach and is in a critical condition.

He was shouting 'Allahu Akbar' - Arabic for 'God is the greatest' - according to the Paris chief of police, and reportedly had paint bombs in his backpack.

A source close to the investigation claims the suspect is an Egyptian man who arrived in France at the end of last month.

An unconfirmed report by TV network LCI names the suspect as 29-year-old Abdallah EH, who arrived in France on a flight from Dubai on January 26. He was not known to security services, the network states.

A source told Reuters: 'According to the investigation's initial indications, it was an Egyptian national.'

After being refused entry to the Louvre, he pulled out the weapon and was shot by a soldier, officials have confirmed. A paratrooper is believed to have suffered a minor head injury.

US President Donald Trump tweeted following the attack in the French capital: 'A new radical Islamic terrorist has just attacked in Louvre Museum in Paris. Tourists were locked down. France on edge again. GET SMART U.S.'

A second man was arrested after 'acting suspiciously' close to the scene, police now do not believe he was linked to the attack.
French Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve has described the attack as 'terrorist in nature'.


A grainy picture claims to show the immediate aftermath of this morning's shooting, after a machete-wielding man attacked four soldiers outside the Louvre in the centre of Paris



The suspect is in a serious condition after being shot five times in the stomach following an attack on four soldiers this morning



The area around the Louvre museum in Paris has been evacuated after a huge security operation was launched this morning


(video can be viewed at the source link)

A building in the 8th arrondissement of Paris was raided by police this afternoon in connection with the attack.

Police were this afternoon carrying out raids around the French capital to try and verify this information.

Meanwhile, surgeons were operating on him at the Georges-Pompidou hospital, as soldiers guarded his ward.

Interior ministry spokesman Pierre-Henry Brandet said the the identity and nationality of the suspect are not yet known. Interior minister Bruno Le Roux has cut short a trip to the Dordogne and is set to visit the injured soldier this afternoon.
ed. Pictures from inside the museum shows schoolchildren cowering during the emergency lockdown.
A photo from inside the Carrousel shows the attacker wearing light trousers and a black top as he lies in a crumpled heap at the bottom of a flight of stairs below the Tuileries Gardens, which are next to the Louvre museum.

He entered at the other side of the complex, on the Rue de Rivoli, where security search bags, and can also ask for identification.

The image was taken by a tour guide who had been leading a group of Chinese tourists. None of them were injured.


This morning's attack has been branded a 'serious security incident' by the French Interior ministry



After being refused entry, a man pulled out the weapon and was shot by a soldier, according to sources at the scene. A solider is believed to have suffered a head injury



Young children were among those inside the Louvre when the 'serious' security incident happened


(another video)


US President Donald Trump described the attacker as a 'radical Islamic terrorist' and said France was 'on edge again'


France's culture minister, Audrey Azoulay, said the Louvre Museum will stay closed for the rest of the day for security reasons, but will reopen tomorrow.

Soldiers patrolling as part of France’s ongoing State of Emergency stopped the man getting into the building shortly after 9am.

‘He was carrying a suitcase and was refused access,’ said a police source at the scene. ‘The man immediately withdrew a knife, and attacked.

‘It was at this moment that a soldier used his weapon to disable the men, who was wounded. The area has been evacuated.’

A spokesman for the military force that patrols key sites in Paris said the four-man patrol of soldiers tried to fight off the assailant before they opened fire.

Benoit Brulon said a soldier who was slightly injured by the attacker was not the solider who opened fire.

The alleged attacker is in a 'serious condition', officials have said.

French newspaper L'Express reports he was taken to the Georges-Pompidou hospital, where he is undergoing surgery.

Michel Cadot, the Paris prefect, said at the scene: 'Emergency workers are currently trying to revive him.
'He was shot five times in the stomach, but is still alive. A soldier was also injured.'

Mr Cadot said the attack happened at the top of an escalator that leads down into the shopping complex.

He said the knifeman 'appeared to be acting alone', and that the words used pointed to extremist terrorism.

Mr Cadot said the soldier had to 'neutralise the attacker' after the soldier was lightly injured by the assailant.
The suspect's rucksack was searched, but there was no sign of any explosives.

Authorities did, however, discover paint bombs in his bag, Le Figaro reports.

(another video)


Armed officers stand guard in the courtyard outside the Louvre following this morning's attack, which has been described as 'terrorist in nature' by French Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve



Large teams of police officers descended on the iconic Louvre museum following this morning's shooting



Soldiers patrolling as part of France’s ongoing State of Emergency stopped the man getting into the building shortly after 9am


The drama unfolded next to the Carrousel du Louvre – a vast underground shopping centre built into the museum complex.

The huge former royal palace in the heart of the city is home to the Mona Lisa and other world-famous works of art but also a shopping complex and numerous exhibition spaces.

It is always packed with thousands of tourists from all over the world, all of whom have their bags inspected before entry. By 11am, the entire area was shut down, as hundreds of extra soldiers and police flooded into the area.

The Rue de Rivoli running alongside the museum was closed to traffic while trains were being pushed through the Palais Royal-Musee du Louvre metro station without stopping.

The emergency response was filmed on live video app Periscope this morning.

Police union official Yves Lefebvre said the man attacked soldiers when they told him he could not enter an underground shopping mall beneath the Louvre with his bags.

Mr Lefebvre says police found two machetes on the man.

(more videos and pictures at the source link)

Among the visitors caught up in the terror were students and staff from Godalming College in Surrey.

A message sent by college chiefs to staff and parents, seen by Get Surrey, said while the drama was ongoing: 'We wanted to let you know that we have been in contact with the Trip Leaders and that all the students and staff are together, safe, and are following advice from security services.

'They are being kept all together in an area of the museum at the moment. From what we are able to glean at this early stage it appears to be an isolated incident.'

Prime Minister Theresa May’s spokesman said travel advice for the French capital had been amended due to the incident.

He told a Westminster briefing: 'The travel advice to Paris has been updated, basically exercising caution in the area affected. Our threat level remains where it is.

'The Foreign Office has been liaising with their counterparts in France. Obviously, we are ready to assist if required.'

‘We’ve been told to leave – it’s very frightening,’ said John O’Shea, a 52-year-old Canadian who was with his wife and young son.
‘Everybody is talking terrorism, but we really don’t know what’s going on. Apparently a number of shots were fired.’

Restaurant worker Sanae Hadraoui, 32, was waiting for breakfast at the Louvre's restaurant complex when she heard the first gunshot.
She said: 'I hear a shot. Then a second shot. Then maybe two more. I hear people screaming, "Evacuate! Evacuate!

'They told us to evacuate. I told my colleagues at the McDonalds. We went downstairs and then took the emergency exit.'

Hadraoui, who has worked at the Louvre for seven years, said the evacuation was orderly. She was smoking a cigarette when her managers told her people were going back inside.

Paris is on a high state of terrorist alert following murderous attacks by Islamic State operatives in 2015.

On November 13 2015, 130 people were murdered in a single night of violence which included attacks on the Stade de France, the Bataclan concert venue and cafés and restaurants.

A shop worker who was in the shopping centre at the time of the attack said: ‘We heard gunfire and reacted immediately – shutting down the grills in front of the shop, and retreating into the back.’

The 19-year-old man, who asked not to be named added: ‘Once the all-clear was given by the police we got out as quickly as possible. I’m on my way home.

‘You always hear about the possibility of terrorism, especially in the area around the Louvre, but this was the real thing.’

Anne Hidalgo, the Socialist Mayor of Paris, soon arrived at the scene to praise the ‘extreme efficiency’ of the soldiers who foiled what could have been a very serious attack.


Mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo (centre) praised the 'extreme efficiency' of soldiers who foiled this morning's attack


Paul Lecher, 68, who was inside the Louvre when the attack happened, said: '(The announcement) came over the loudspeakers that are dotted around.

'Everything happened calmly. It was just a case of listening ... People quickly understood, even those who didn't understand a word of French, that something unusual was happening.'

Visitors were kept inside for a time after the attempted attack.

'There were announcements, then the security guards started running all over the place and after a short period they started gathering everybody up and getting them to one side of the building,' said Lance Manus, 71, from Albany, New York.

Manus and his wife Wendy said security guards made people sit tightly together, away from the windows, and that some children were crying.

'We sat there for over an hour waiting and finally they said we are going to evacuate... as we exited the police were searching and checking everybody.'

A French Socialist lawmaker who wrote a report on the fight against terror has warned that France faces a 'double menace', coming from both outside the country and from within.

Sebastien Pietrasanta told The Associated Press that 'the worst has yet to come'.

Mr Pietrasanta said that France is likely to be targeted again, either by well-organized cells sent by the Islamic State group, or by lone wolves radicalized in France and capable of launching attacks from one day to the next.

The said: 'We are facing a persistent threat and instability will last for at least one generation.'

He added that military personnel and police officers are particularly targeted by extremists because they represent the French state.

French President Francois Hollande said there is 'no doubt' that the attack on the Louvre Museum was of a 'terrorist nature'.

Speaking at an EU summit in Malta, he said the situation around the Paris landmark museum is 'totally under control' but the overall threat to France remains.

He said he expects the assailant to be questioned 'when it is possible to do so'.

Hollande insisted the incident showed the need for the increased security patrols that have been deployed around France since attacks in 2015 and 2016.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...ted-Paris.html

Such a shame to have to worry about a nation's beautiful treasures like the Louvre. Poor Paris, poor France. Things are a mess all over the world because of Radical Islamic Terrorism. Who is responsible for that? Radical Islamic Terrorists.

Hunt them down, take them out. No mercy, no exception.

Americans didn't start this, but we are committed to finishing it in the United States. Strongly suggest other nations do likewise.

Jihad at the Louvre

Louvre museum reopens; Egypt identifies machete attacker

Associated Press

The Louvre Museum reopened to the public Saturday, less than 24 hours after a machete-wielding assailant shouting "Allahu akbar!" attacked French soldiers guarding the sprawling building and was shot by them.

The worldwide draw of the iconic museum in central Paris, host to thousands of artworks, including the "Mona Lisa," was on full display on a drizzly winter day as international tourists filed by armed police and soldiers patrolling outside the site, which had been closed immediately after Friday's attack.

The attacker was shot four times after slightly injuring a soldier patrolling the nearby underground mall, but his injuries on Saturday no longer were considered life-threatening, the Paris prosecutor's office said.

French President Francois Hollande said there is "no doubt" the suspect's actions were a terror attack, and he will be questioned as soon as possible.

An Egyptian Interior Ministry official confirmed to the Associated Press on Saturday that the attacker is Egyptian-born Abdullah Reda Refaie al-Hamahmy, who is 28, not 29 as widely reported.

The official said an initial investigation in Egypt found no record of political activism, criminal activity or membership in any militant group by him. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the media.

French authorities said they are not yet ready to name the suspect, but confirmed they thought he was Egyptian.

The suspect was believed to have been living in the United Arab Emirates and came to Paris on Jan. 26 on a tourist visa, prosecutor Francois Molins said. The suspect bought two military machetes at a gun store in Paris and paid 1,700 euros ($1,834) for a one-week stay at a Paris apartment in the chic 8th arrondissement, near the Champs-Elysees Avenue.

On the Twitter account of an "Abdallah El-Hamahmy," a tweet was posted about a trip from Dubai to Paris on Jan. 26. In the profile photo, Hamahmy is seen smiling and leaning against a wall in a blue-and-white sports jacket.

In another tweet in Arabic written shortly before the Louvre attack, Hamahmy posted an angry tirade: "No negotiation, no compromise, no letting up, certainly no climb down, relentless war."

In an interview Saturday on the Dubai-based news channel al-Hadath, Hamahmy's father, Reda Refae al-Hamahmy, said he was shocked to learn of his son's alleged involvement in the latest Paris attack and denied that he was a radical or belonged to any militant groups.

"All I want is to know the truth and find out whether he is dead or alive," the father said.

"This is all a scenario made up by the French government to justify the soldiers opening fire," he added. "He is a very normal young man."

The father said Hamahmy is married with a 7-month-old child and told them he intended to tour the sights in Paris before leaving France. He sent his father a photo of himself with the Eiffel Tower in the background shortly before the clash at the Louvre.

Hamahmy's brother Ahmed, who works at the Health Ministry in Dubai, was interrogated for several hours by security officials in the United Arab Emirates, the father said.

In Egypt, several domestic security agency officers visited the family home in the Nile Delta on Friday night to question family members.

At the Louvre on Saturday, visitors expressed mixed feelings about the incident, with some planning to leave Paris earlier than planned.

"We heard on the news that a terrorist attack took place. ... We stayed at the hotel and we're thinking about cutting our vacation in Paris short," said Lucia Reveron from Argentina.
Others felt safer because of the heightened security presence.

"I went around yesterday in the evening, and security was everywhere. Even now, when we arrived [at the Louvre], we were checked and it's secure. I don't feel any threats," said Kurt Vellafonde from Malta.

With the spate of attacks on France in the last few years, many residents have become resilient, even blasé.

"There have been very good security measures taken, and it does not scare me at all," Regine Dechivre said. "It's the phenomena of a person a little bit disturbed. The investigation will tell us what exactly happened."

The United Arab Emirates condemned the attack at the Louvre, but UAE officials offered no comment Saturday about the suspect's possible connection to the country.

The UAE, which includes the Mideast commercial hub of Dubai, is a major destination for guest workers from Egypt and other countries. Foreign residents outnumber native Emiratis roughly 4 to 1.

"The UAE, while strongly condemning this hideous crime, affirms its full solidarity with the friendly French Republic in these circumstances and its support for whatever measures France may take to preserve its security and safety of its citizens and residents," the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation said.

France is working with the Emirates to build a branch of the Louvre in the federal capital, Abu Dhabi. The project has been repeatedly delayed and is expected to open later this year.

http://www.latimes.com/world/la-fg-l...204-story.html

Add egypt to the list of travel bans,