Radicalized Islamist Kills German Tourist and Injures 2 Others in Paris

According to officials, a radical Islamist with mental health issues stabbed a German tourist to death and injured two others in central Paris on Saturday before being captured by police.

The attack occurred near the Eiffel Tower on a busy late Sunday night, with the country on high alert for attacks as tensions increase against the backdrop of Israel’s battle with Hamas.

“We will not give in to terrorism,” Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne said after the attack on X, formerly Twitter.

French anti-terror authorities said they would now take up the inquiry.

According to a police source, the attacker was known to authorities as a hardline Islamist who was receiving treatment for mental illness.

Before being caught, he yelled “Allahu Akbar” (“God is greatest”), according to France 24.

Attacker Radicalized After Prison Sentence

According to the Paris prosecutor’s office, the attacker is French, born in 1997, and has been arrested in connection with a murder and attempted murder investigation.

Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, who attended the scene near the River Seine’s Bir Hakeim bridge, said the man had already been condemned to “four years in prison” in 2016 for planning another attack that he did not carry out.

“A man attacked a foreign tourist couple.” “A German tourist born in the Philippines died as a result of the stabbing,” he said.

Darmanin claimed that a taxi driver who observed the incident intervened. While police pursued him, the attacker crossed the Seine, hitting others and wounding one with a hammer.

The man was then apprehended after police used a taser to neutralize him.

“He had threatened them very violently… he will now have to answer for his actions before justice,” she said.

According to the minister, the suspect informed police that he could not abide the killing of Muslims in “Afghanistan and Palestine.”

Tensions are growing in Paris

As he sat at a bar, Joseph S., 37, a grocery manager who declined to disclose his last name, witnessed the incident. He could hear shouts and people yelling “help, help” as they fled. A man brandishing an instrument struck a man who had fallen down, and the police arrived within 10 minutes, he said.

Several assaults by Islamist extremists have occurred in the country, including the November 2015 suicide and gun attacks in Paris claimed by the Islamic State organization, which killed 130 people.

Even though officials have warned that the threat exists, there has been a relative calm in recent years.

However, tensions have escalated in France, a country with sizable Jewish and Muslim communities, in the aftermath of Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7 and Israel’s bombardment of the Gaza Strip.

Paris’ security is also being scrutinized as the city prepares to host the Summer Olympic Games in 2024.

Islamist extremism in France

In October, a young radicalized Islamist from Russia’s Caucasus area assassinated teacher Dominique Bernard in the northern French town of Arras. France has faced terrorism-related security issues, and the government has implemented measures to address these concerns while simultaneously striving to safeguard the principles of liberty, equality, and secularism.

Typically, counter terrorism measures are focused on identifying and preventing radicalization, guaranteeing public safety, and encouraging community engagement. France, like many other countries, has a diversified population that includes people from a variety of religious, cultural, and ideological backgrounds.

While there have been cases of radicalization and Islamist extremism in France, it is critical not to stigmatize an entire community based on the conduct of a few individuals.

If you have specific questions or concerns regarding a specific occurrence or development, it is best to consult the most recent and trustworthy news sources or official statements from relevant authorities.

Furthermore, encouraging open communication and understanding among varied populations is critical for tackling the underlying causes of extremism and developing more inclusive society.