Hmmm, quite a few head scratchers in this article. It's not terrorism, but it's terrorism. Or something like that.

Paris knife attack wounds seven

Latest update : 10/09/2018
Seven people including two British tourists were wounded Sunday in Paris after they were attacked by a man armed with a knife and an iron bar, according to police and other sources.

A source close to the inquiry said the suspect, believed to be an Afghan national, has been arrested.

"Nothing at this stage shows signs of a terrorist nature in these assaults," the source said, adding that the attacker had targeted "strangers in the street".

Of the seven wounded, four are in a critical condition, police said.

The incident took place just after 11:00pm (2100 GMT) on the banks of a canal in the northeast of the capital.

A security guard at one of two cinemas on either side of the Bassin de la Villette, part of the Canal de l'Ourcq, said he saw a man who had already assaulted people being chased by two other men who tried to stop him.

"He had an iron bar in his hand which he threw at the men chasing him, then he took out a knife," he told AFP.

Another eyewitness, 28-year-old Youssef Najah, said he was walking along the canal near a bowling green when he saw a man running and holding a knife about 25-30 cm (10-11 inches) long.

"There were around 20 people chasing him. They started throwing Petanque balls at him," Najah said, referring to the sport popular in France also known as boules.

"Around four or five balls hit him in the head, but they weren't able to stop him," he added.

According to the same witness, the attacker then dived into an alleyway, where the man "tried to hide behind two British tourists. We said to them: 'Watch out, he has a knife". But they didn't react".

The pair were then attacked, he said.

High alert

A police investigation has been launched for attempted murder, according to a judicial source.

It is the latest of several knife attacks France has seen in recent months, with terrorism being ruled out in most cases.

On August 23, a man stabbed his mother and sister to death and seriously injured another person in a town near Paris before being shot dead by police.

The motive for the violence remained unclear despite a claim by the Islamic State (IS) group that it was an attack by one of its fighters responding to the terror organisation's propaganda.

Authorities said the 36-year-old had serious mental health problems and had been on a terror watch list since 2016.

That attack came days after an Afghan asylum-seeker was arrested in town of Perigueux for a drunken rampage with a knife in which four people were wounded, one seriously.

Police said investigators had "very quickly" dismissed a terrorist motive after the August 13 incident.

And on June 17, two people were hurt in another southern town when a woman shouting "Allahu akbar" (God is greatest) attacked them in a supermarket with a boxcutter knife.

France has been on high alert following a string of jihadist attacks in recent years, often by people who have become radicalised or claim to have acted in the name of the IS group.

More than 240 people have been killed by Islamic extremists since a massacre at the Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine in Paris in January 2015.

https://france24.com/en/201809...-wounds-seven-france

quote:

"Nothing at this stage shows signs of a terrorist nature in these assaults," the source said, adding that the attacker had targeted "strangers in the street".

What in the world does that last part mean? Terrorists only attack friends and acquaintances?

quote:

Originally posted by Balzé Halzé:
Authorities said the 36-year-old had serious mental health problems and had been on a terror watch list since 2016.

Hmmm, do all who have "serious mental health problems" find themselves placed on the terror watch list?

The attacker has been on the list since 2016 and yet he managed to carry out his attack.

There seems to be a common thread with these lists...terrorists and mass killers either placed on some sort of watch list or authorities having had some interactions and warnings about the killers before the actual attack...and yet repeatedly they are able to still carry out their attacks.

I'm not opposed to these lists but at some point action needs to be taken prior to the attack. Far too much emphasis is placed on these lists and there supposed effectiveness in guarding public safety.

“Hmmm, quite a few head scratchers in this article. It's not terrorism, but it's terrorism. Or something like that.“

quote:

It is the latest of several knife attacks France has seen in recent months, with terrorism being ruled out in most cases.

<insert suitable comment here>

The EU has lost its collective mind...on the risky assumption that it ever had one

quote:

Originally posted by Balzé Halzé:
"There were around 20 people chasing him. They started throwing Petanque balls at him," Najah said, referring to the sport popular in France also known as boules.

"Around four or five balls hit him in the head, but they weren't able to stop him," he added.

Those aren't exactly light, getting hit in the head with one of those you're either gonna get knocked-out or, gonna have a concussion. Probably won't matter since it sounds like this guy is a mental case.

Are frenchies wimps and do they throw underhand?

I suppose that no one ever thought to deport the guy so this very thing couldn't have happened

have we stopped connecting the dots?

maybe 17 years is too long for people to remember

quote:

Originally posted by rburg:
Are frenchies wimps and do they throw underhand?

I can't say they're wimps, but underhand is how you throw when playing petanque. Perhaps they took it as an opportunity to practice.

quote:

Originally posted by Balzé Halzé:

quote:

Originally posted by rburg:
Are frenchies wimps and do they throw underhand?

I can't say they're wimps, but underhand is how you throw when playing petanque. Perhaps they took it as an opportunity to practice.

had to look it up,

basically Bocce ,


I have a cheap set of Bocce , getting hit by one of those would suck,

quote:

getting hit by one of those would suck

If the thrower threw like a guy.

Maybe they should place buckets of rocks in strategic locations and train some of the population how to throw for effect.

Perhaps it's time to learn from China on how to deal with Muslims.