France Church Attack: French Interior Minister says attacker came to Nice 'to kill'

Following the Nice Church attack in France, French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said that the man came to Nice with an 'aim to kill'. Darmanin said that his motive was not to 'obtain any documents'. He further said that France has deployed extra police personnel to the Italy border and stressed on the fact that they did not wish to see every foreigner as a terrorist.

On Thursday, a 21-year-old Tunisian man named Ibrahim Issaoui, armed with a knife, attacked and killed three worshippers at the Notre Dame basilica in Nice. According to the authorities, the man, who was carrying a copy of the Quran, arrived in France on a migrant boat after crossing Italy. 

"He clearly came here to kill. How else would you explain why he had arrived armed with several knives?" French Interior Minister stated why speaking to La Voix du Nord publication. 

Speaking further about the France Church Attack, Gerald Darmanin said that while determining the attackers motive was up to the anti-terrorism prosecutor, it was clear that 'he obviously did not come to obtain documents'. Earlier in a conversation with RTL Radio, the French Interior Minister had warned about the possibility of more such attacks while speaking about the multiple terror attacks and subsequent attempts by Islamist radicals. He had also stated that the 'enemy' was both inside as well as outside the country, as France continues its crackdown on extremism. 

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"We are in a war against an enemy that is both inside and outside. We need to understand that there have been and there will be other events such as these terrible attacks," said French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin. 

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France Church Attack in Nice

The Nice attack, which has been labelled as an act of Islamist terror, took place on Thursday where three people lost their lives—55-year old Churchwarden Vincent Loques, 60-year old churchgoer Nadine Devillers and 44-year old Simone Barreto Silva. The authorities have beefed up security in the country following the attack as the investigators in France, Italy as well as Tunisia are working hard to find and understand the motive of the prime suspect, Ibrahim Issaoui, and whether he was working alone or not. The prime suspect has not been questioned yet as he remains in critical condition in a French hospital after being wounded during the arrest. 

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A total of 6 people have been detained by the authorities in connection with the France Church attack, including Issaoui. The suspects in custody are between the ages of 25 and 63 years and were caught after the police spotted them on video surveillance as well as while searching homes in the area as part of the investigation. While their connection with the attack in Nice remains unclear the French and Tunisian authorities are investigating the claims made by a previously unknown extremist group from Tunisia which took responsibility for the attack on the Church in Nice. 

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(With inputs from ANI & AP)