At Least 80 Dead After Attacker Crashes Truck Through Parade in Nice, France [UPDATED]
According to French officials, at least 80 people are dead and 18 are in critical condition in Nice, France, after a driver plowed a truck through a crowd during a Bastille Day parade, the BBC reports. French President Francois Hollande said the attack was of a “terrorist nature.”
Massenpanik in Nizza. @gutjahr ist vor Ort und schilderte im Nachtmagzin seine Eindrücke. pic.twitter.com/FaWE4ntcuP
— tagesschau (@tagesschau) July 14, 2016
People running away from scene in #Nice (#France) after vehicle hit crowd, unclear if terrorist attack pic.twitter.com/XRQ8zrZG2J
— Roeland Roovers (@r0eland) July 14, 2016
Fox News reports that a witness saw a gunman fire into the crowd before being shot by police. Images from the scene show a truck with what appear to bullet holes in the window.
Le camion criblé de balles #AttaquesNice pic.twitter.com/dDXTulKieh
— Nice-Matin (@Nice_Matin) July 14, 2016
Photo shows bullet holes in the windshield of the truck that plowed into a crowd in Nice, France. Dozens are dead pic.twitter.com/W1vDCxwbu9
— BuzzFeed News (@BuzzFeedNews) July 14, 2016
Shortly after the deaths in Nice were reported, witnesses observed clouds of black smoke near the Eiffel Tower. However, early reports attribute the smoke to a fireworks malfunction and there is not any evidence to suggest the the two incidents are connected.
Fire at the Eiffel tower https://t.co/5iE0rmGt2q pic.twitter.com/Eh8Dv3wEyu via @alexisthiebaut
— Liveuamap (@Liveuamap) July 14, 2016
UPDATE 7:11 P.M.: According to France’s Ministry of the Interior, the driver has been “neutralized” and investigators are determining whether he acted alone.
.@PHBrandet (porte-parole) : l'individu qui conduisait le camion a été neutralisé. L'enquête déterminera s'il a agi seul #Nice
— Ministère Intérieur (@Place_Beauvau) July 14, 2016
UPDATE 7:20 P.M.: Nice prosecutors now say at least 73 people are dead, iTele reports.
UPDATE 8:20 P.M.: Speaking to BLM-TV, regional council president Christian Estrosi said that the attacker fired shots into the crowd and police later found the truck to be “loaded with weapons,” including firearms and grenades.
UPDATE 10:15 P.M.: In a public address, French President Francois Hollande said that at least 77 people are dead, including children, and characterized the attack as of a “terrorist nature.” He announced that a current state of emergency scheduled to end in two weeks will be extended by three months.
“All of France is under the threat of Islamic terrorism,” said Hollande.
UPDATE 12:05 A.M.: According to the BBC, French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said that at least 80 people are dead and 18 are in critical condition.
This post will be updated as more information becomes available.