France will not cede to “ enemies of freedom”: Macron

ELAINE GANLEY
INTERNATIONAL.- President Emmanuel Macron says France will not cede to “enemies of freedom” after a Paris stabbing attack claimed by the Islamic State group. Macron tweeted his praise for police who “neutralized the terrorist” and his thoughts for the victims. A knife-wielding man killed one person and injured four during the Saturday night attack in a busy Right Bank neighborhood. Police say they killed a suspect.

Counterterrorism authorities are leading the investigation of the attack. France has been repeatedly targeted by IS and experienced multiple deadly attacks. France’s military is active in the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria. Macron said: “France is once again paying the price of blood, but will not cede an inch to enemies of freedom.” The Islamic State group’s news agency claims that a man who stabbed five people in Paris was a “soldier” of the extremist movement.

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The Aamaq news agency said in a statement early Sunday that the assailant carried out the Saturday night attack in response to the Islamic State group’s calls for supporters to target members of the U.S.-led military coalition squeezing the extremists out of Iraq and Syria. France’s military has been active in the coalition since 2014. The Aamaq statement did not provide evidence for its claim or details on the identity of the assailant, who was apparently killed by police.

French authorities have opened a terrorism investigation after a knife-wielding assailant killed one person and injured four others in the center of Paris. The Paris prosecutor says counterterrorism authorities are investigating Saturday’s attack in a busy neighborhood of Paris’ Right Bank.

The alleged attacker was killed by police. Prosecutor Francois Molins said witnesses reported that the suspect shouted “Allahu Akbar,” or “God is great” in Arabic. Molins told reporters that based on the method of the attack, counterterrorism authorities are leading the investigation on potential charges of murder and attempted murder in connection with terrorist motives.

The Islamic State group news agency claimed the suspect as one of its “soldiers” on Saturday night. French authorities say a knifewielding assailant killed one person and injured four in the center of Paris before being killed by police. Paris police tweeted that the attack occurred Saturday evening in the 2nd arrondissement or district of the French capital. Police said the person armed with the knife targeted five people, killing one and seriously injuring two and lightly injuring the other two.