{UAH} BASTILLE DAY MASSACRE: ISLAMISTS IN NEW OUTRAGE

Nice attack: What we know
15 July 2016F

The lorry was finally brought to a stop opposite a luxury hotel:
police had raked the windscreen with bullets
The killing of 84 people celebrating Bastille Day is the worst attack
on France since the 13 November attacks last year.

France has been under a state of emergency ever since and security
across the country was high, with intelligence services warning of the
risk of further attacks.

Thousands had gathered to watch the fireworks in stormy conditions in Nice
The terror began a little after 22:30 (20:30 GMT) on Thursday, shortly
after thousands of people had watched a firework display on the
seafront in Nice, at the end of a day marking France's national
holiday, Bastille Day.

There had been a mood of celebration and the crowd had enjoyed an air
force display during the evening.

As families strolled along the city's renowned Promenade des Anglais,
a large white lorry careered at full speed towards them. The vehicle
mounted the kerb then went back on the road, zigzagging for up to 2km
(1.25 miles), as the driver intentionally drove into the crowd.

A local MP spoke of hundreds of people being run over.

Police finally managed to bring the lorry to a halt near the luxury
Palais de la Mediterranee hotel.

"I was opposite the Palais de la Mediterranee when I saw a lorry at
high speed running over people. I saw it with my own eyes, people
tried to stop it," said one witness.

The driver opened fire on people in the crowd, according to local
reports. Police fired back and the driver was eventually shot dead.
Images from the scene showed the windscreen and front of the lorry
raked with bullets. Interior ministry officials said the attacker had
been "neutralised".

■Live text and video updates
■Bastille Day attack in pictures
■Social media reacts to attack
■Witnesses describe terror

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Who was driving the lorry?
The driver has been identified locally as a 31-year-old man of
Franco-Tunisian origin from identity papers found inside the lorry.
However police are yet to confirm the details.

Police found guns and a grenade inside the lorry, but later said these
were fake.

Media captionFrancois Hollande: "Horror has come down on France once again"

It was not initially clear if he was acting alone. There were rumours,
which later proved to be false, that hostages had been taken in two
nearby hotels.

Residents were told to stay indoors amid fears of more violence.

Who was the Nice attacker?


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How have the authorities reacted?
It soon became clear that many people had died, although the full
scale of the disaster was unclear. The dead and injured were taken to
the local Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Nice.

The hospital launched its crisis mode for exceptional health
situations and put out an emergency number for families: 00 33 (0)4 93
72 22 22.

The presidency said during the night that the president and prime
minister had convened an interministerial crisis meeting
In the area around Nice, the anti-terror alert has been raised to its
highest level.

President Francois Hollande was flown back to Paris from a visit to
Avignon, joining Prime Minister Manuel Valls in a crisis room.

Who was behind the attack?

It was not long before President Hollande said it was "an attack whose
terrorist nature cannot be denied".

Anti-terrorist prosecutors in Paris have launched an inquiry for
murder and attempted murder as part of an organised terrorist strike.

Nice was at its highest state of alert
Earlier this week, France's DGSI internal security organisation warned
of the danger of further attacks from Islamist militants with
"booby-trapped vehicles and bombs".

Although so-called Islamic State has not yet said it was behind the
murders, it has targeted France on several occasions since January
2015.

Only hours before the Nice attack, President Hollande had announced
that France's state of emergency would be removed later this month. He
later announced it was being extended.


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