It's another clash of civilizations outside a place associated with civilization, the The Place de l'Opéra. The attacker, a Chechen Muslim, followed the increasingly common tactic of ISIS sympathizers, heading to a popular nightlife spot and trying to stab as many people as he could. He stabbed 5, one died. And ISIS is taking the credit.
And yes, he was shouting,"Allahu Akbar."
Despite the ISIS claim and the Akbaring, look for the authorities to try the usual dodge of blaming mental illness.
Another witness, Fiona Zanetti, said she was in a restaurant when the attack happened. “The guy just targeted people, at random it seemed, attacking them in the street where they were standing or walking. People started running.”
A third witness, a restaurant worker, said: “There was a lady standing near the entrance of the restaurant and he went for her and then stabbed her boyfriend. There was chaos, and then there were two shots.”
Charles Pellegrin, a journalist, said: “I came out of a comedy show and was told to go back inside immediately because there was a madman with a knife. Once inside, we heard sirens and two gun shots.”
More than 245 people have been killed in a string of jihadist attacks across France in the past three years.
Loic Travers, a police union spokesman, said the onslaught was similar to a knife attack carried out by a suspected jihadist in Marseille last year.
The unidentified attacker targeted five people and then fled, according to Paris police and a witness. A 29-year-old man was killed, and four others were injured.
Police first attempted to taser the attacker, but opened fire after failing to subdue him, witnesses said.
Just another day in Paris. Tourism and local nightlife had already been suffering. And this is an added deterrent.
France has a problem. And it can only get worse until it's addressed.