At least 77 people have been killed and more than 50 injured after a truck mowed down crowds for more than a mile before the driver got out and sprayed crowds with bullets in a terror attack during the Bastille Day celebrations in the French city of Nice.
Identity documents belonging to a 31-year-old French Tunisian were found in the truck according to security sources.
The source said: ‘The identification of the truck driver is still underway.’ The recovered documents indicate the man is a resident of Nice.
One eyewitness described seeing ‘bodies flying like bowling pins’ and ‘hearing noises, cries that I will never forget’ as the horror unfolded on a busy promenade at around 10.30pm last night.
The t
ruck driver was said to have shouted ‘Allahu Akbar’ — God is greatest — before being shot dead by police. Pro-ISIS groups have been celebrating the attack but as yet the terror group has not officially claimed responsibility.
Guns and grenades were later found inside the truck, which mounted the pavement at approximately 40mph and steered directly towards hundreds of people watching a fireworks display.
Anti-terror police swooped in as the city was put on lockdown and residents were warned to stay indoors for their safety. Gunshots rang out in the streets, with gunmen targeting hotels and cafes in the port city in the south of France.
Eyewitnesses say there was an exchange of gunfire in the aftermath of the incident before the driver was shot dead. ISIS has claimed responsibility for the attack, according to unconfirmed reports in the French media.
Guns and grenades were later said to have been found inside the truck, which mounted the pavement at approximately 40mph and steered directly towards hundreds of people watching a fireworks display.
Anti-terror police swooped in as the city was put on lockdown and residents were warned to stay indoors for their safety. Gunshots rang out in the streets, with gunmen targeting hotels and cafes in the port city in the south of France.
One witness called Antoine said: ‘We were at the Neptune beach and a firework display had just finished. That is when we saw a white lorry. It was going quickly at 60-70 kilometres an hour.’
The gunman jumped out of the truck after ploughing through the pedestrians and began opening fire, witnesses said. Officials said the driver was shot dead near the scene. A second suspect is thought to be on the run.
Eyewitness Wassim Bouhlel said that he saw a truck drive into the crowd and then witnessed the man emerge with a gun and start shooting.
‘There was carnage on the road,’ Bouhlel said. ‘Bodies everywhere.’
Anti terrorist police have taken over the investigation into the attack according to the French interior ministry.
France’s ambassador to the United States, Gerard Araud, said last night’s incident was a ‘terrorist attack’.
Addressing a Bastille Day reception in Washington, Araud said: ‘Our democracies – France, the United States, our other partners , we are besieged, we face a terrible threat.’
NICE BASTILLE DAY TERRORIST MASSACRE – WHAT WE KNOW SO FAR
At least 77 people have been killed after a truck slammed into a crowd of people celebrating Bastille Day in the southern French city of Nice.
Here is what we know about what US President Barack Obama has said ‘appears to be a horrific terrorist attack’.
How did the attack unfold?
The large white truck plunged into the crowd at around 11:00pm (2100 GMT) Thursday night as hundreds of people were on Nice’s beachfront Promenade des Anglais to watch the fireworks for France’s national day.
Local deputy mayor Christian Estrosi said at least 77 people were killed after the truck ploughed two kilometres (1.3 miles) through the crowd.
Interior ministry spokesman Pierre-Henry Brandet denied reports that people had been taken hostage.
The attacker has been shot dead, the government said. He is yet to be identified.
Was this a jihadist attack?
The attack has not been claimed by any group, but prosecutors say the probe will be handled by anti-terrorism investigators.
‘Investigations are currently underway to establish if the individual acted alone or if he had accomplices who might have fled,’ Brandet said.
The attack comes with France under a state of emergency following the Islamic State attacks in Paris in November that left 130 people dead.
Has anything like this happened in France before?
In December 2014, two men ploughed their cars into pedestrians in two days – separate incidents that left France reeling.
The first driver shouted ‘Allahu Akbar’ (God is greatest) as he drove into people in the eastern city of Dijon, injuring 13.
The 40-year-old driver had a long history of mental illness, and no ties to jihadist groups, the government said.
A day later, a man rammed a white van into a Christmas market in the western city of Nantes, killing one person and injuring nine others. He then stabbed himself several times.
Prosecutors said a notebook was found in his vehicle in which he spoke of his ‘hatred for society’ and said he feared ‘being killed by secret agents’.
The man committed suicide in his prison cell in 2016 while awaiting trial.
Horrific moment truck ploughs into crowd of people in Nice
Interior Ministry spokesman Pierre-Henry Brandet gave an update on the rapidly developing situation. He said: ‘There is no hostage-taking. An individual drove a truck into the crowd. He was killed by police.
‘Investigations are currently under way to establish if the individual acted alone or if he had accomplices who might have fled.’
Local politician Eric Ciotti said: ‘It’s a scene of horror.’ He confirmed the truck mowed down ‘several hundred people’.
He said the truck drove for more than a mile hitting people along the promenade.
Mr Ciotti confirmed the driver was killed by police ‘apparently after an exchange of gunfire’.
The truck was riddled with at least 40 bullet holes. The front of the vehicle was badly damaged while the front tyres had been shot out.
The Paris prosecutor’s office opened an investigation for ‘murder, attempted murder in an organised group linked to a terrorist enterprise’.
The probe is being handled by France’s intelligence agency and judicial police.
A spokesman for the Alpes Maritime prefecture advised locals to ‘stay indoors’ as gunfire was heard, and a lorry was driven into a crowd on the Promenade des Anglais.
Eyewitnesses said there were ‘bodies everywhere’ with at least 150 people injured.
The truck driver crashed his vehicle and jumped out and started shooting.
Police are also searching for an accomplice.
At this stage, police are describing the incident as ‘a major criminal attack’.
Sebastian Humbert, prefect for the Alpes – Martime area said: ‘A truck rammed into the crowd over a long distance, which explains this extremely heavy toll.’