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Backgrounder: France becomes target of frequent terrorist attacks in 2015
Source:Xinhua Published: 2015-11-14 19:54:58
The series of bloody terror attacks hitting seven different locations in and around Paris Friday night reminded people that France has become a major target of frequent terrorist attacks in 2015.
The Friday night attacks killed at least 140 people and constituted the worst violent carnage in France since World War II.
French President Francois Hollande has declared a nationwide state of emergency and announced the close of borders, saying at the Bataclan concert hall, where the worst slaughters happened, that the attackers will be fought "without mercy".
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attacks, although jihadists on Twitter immediately praised the attackers and criticized France's military operations against the Islamic State (IS) militants, while anti-terrorism experts and media reports were pointing to IS and al-Qaeda as potential perpetrators.
Home to a large number of Islamic immigrants especially from northern Africa, France, a founder of the US-led coalition conducting air strikes against the IS fighters in Syria and Iraq, has suffered from frequent terrorist attacks this year, albeit tightened security measures especially recently, when a major global climate conference in Paris nears.
On Jan. 7, 2015, two gunmen stormed into the office of Paris-based Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine, which published cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad, and shot dead 12 people. An apparent associate of the shooters killed a police and four hostages held at a kosher market in the following two days.
The Charlie Hebdo shooters claimed links to extremists in Yemen while the kosher market attacker had ties with the IS.
On Aug. 21, 2015, an armed man opened fire against passengers of a Thalys high-speed train between Amsterdam and Paris, wounding three before being arrested.
Investigation later concluded that the gunman, a Moroccan young man identified as Ayoub el-Khazani, had "targeted and premeditated" the attack. He had lived in the Paris suburb of Aubervilliers for "five to seven months" in 2014 and returned to Europe on June 4 from Turkey.
On June 26, 2015, two men rammed a car into the gas containers of a US gas company in southeast France's Isere, triggering an explosion. In addition to at least two wounded people, a decapitated body was found at the site with an IS flag aside.
The French Interior Ministry later announced that the suspect arrested in connection with the attack, named Yassin Salhi, had been on watch list for radicalization in 2006, and that he had links with Islamist movements.
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The Friday night attacks killed at least 140 people and constituted the worst violent carnage in France since World War II.
French President Francois Hollande has declared a nationwide state of emergency and announced the close of borders, saying at the Bataclan concert hall, where the worst slaughters happened, that the attackers will be fought "without mercy".
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attacks, although jihadists on Twitter immediately praised the attackers and criticized France's military operations against the Islamic State (IS) militants, while anti-terrorism experts and media reports were pointing to IS and al-Qaeda as potential perpetrators.
Home to a large number of Islamic immigrants especially from northern Africa, France, a founder of the US-led coalition conducting air strikes against the IS fighters in Syria and Iraq, has suffered from frequent terrorist attacks this year, albeit tightened security measures especially recently, when a major global climate conference in Paris nears.
On Jan. 7, 2015, two gunmen stormed into the office of Paris-based Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine, which published cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad, and shot dead 12 people. An apparent associate of the shooters killed a police and four hostages held at a kosher market in the following two days.
The Charlie Hebdo shooters claimed links to extremists in Yemen while the kosher market attacker had ties with the IS.
On Aug. 21, 2015, an armed man opened fire against passengers of a Thalys high-speed train between Amsterdam and Paris, wounding three before being arrested.
Investigation later concluded that the gunman, a Moroccan young man identified as Ayoub el-Khazani, had "targeted and premeditated" the attack. He had lived in the Paris suburb of Aubervilliers for "five to seven months" in 2014 and returned to Europe on June 4 from Turkey.
On June 26, 2015, two men rammed a car into the gas containers of a US gas company in southeast France's Isere, triggering an explosion. In addition to at least two wounded people, a decapitated body was found at the site with an IS flag aside.
The French Interior Ministry later announced that the suspect arrested in connection with the attack, named Yassin Salhi, had been on watch list for radicalization in 2006, and that he had links with Islamist movements.
Read more in Special Coverage:
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