Year after attack, Paris still scarred
State of emergency remains in effect, as do questions
PARIS — A year ago the Islamic State group brought its extremist war to Paris, seeding terror with attacks on a rock concert, the national stadium and bustling sidewalk cafes. Here is a look at the deadly events on the night of Nov. 13, 2015, and their lasting consequences for the world. What happened: It began with suicide bombings outside the Stade de France around 9:20 p.m., during a match between the French and German national soccer teams, with President Francois Hollande in attendance. Three bombers killed one passerby. If the attackers had made it past security, the toll would have been much worse.
Within minutes, the shooting began in eastern Paris, as the cafes of the 10th and 11th districts were booming with Friday night revelers. Six cafes were targeted by a three-man commando unit— Le Carillon, Le Petit Cambodge, Cafe Bonne Biere, Casa Nostra, La Belle Equipe and the Comptoir Voltaire. More than 400 shots were fired over about 10 minutes, leaving 39 people dead.
Then came the Bataclan concert hall, where 90 others lost their lives. Three attackers stormed the hall during a performance by the California rock band Eagles of Death Metal, spraying concert-goers with gunfire and hunting down others who were desperately trying to hide.
Altogether 130 people were killed from 17 nations. Hundreds more were wounded and nine of them remain hospitalized today. Why France? The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attacks, citing France’s military operation against extremists in Iraq and Syria alongside U.S. and other forces. France has long been a favored target of religious fundamentalists because of its strict secularism, including laws banning Muslim head scarves in schools and face veils in public. Many of the attackers were French Muslims from communities frustrated by decades of entrenched discrimination. The attackers: Seven attackers were killed Friday night, either by blowing themselves up or being shot by police. Two others were killed in a police raid five days later. One key player escaped — Salah Abdeslam — and was arrested four months later in Belgium.
But other members of the network survived, plotting new violence from family apartments in Belgium and Islamic State bases in Syria or Iraq. Days after Abdeslam’s arrest, three attackers set off bombs in the Brussels airport and a Brussels subway train, killing 32 people. France’s reaction: Hollande quickly ordered new airstrikes on Islamic State targets in Syria, expanding France’s military campaign to show the country wouldn’t be cowed. Attackers with links or allegiance to Islamic State have hit France repeatedly since then, including a truck rampage on Bastille Day in Nice that killed 85 people. Today, French warplanes and forces are involved in the battle to oust Islamic State militants from the Iraqi city of Mosul and the Syrian city of Raqqa.
At home, the French government declared a state of emergency that has been repeatedly extended and remains in place to this day, allowing greater police use of house searches and house arrest. Human rights groups decry the French measures as an over-the-top crackdown that foments suspicion and infringes on personal liberties. Questions linger: Many questions remain about the Paris attacks. Two attackers’ identities remain unknown, but it’s believed they are Iraqis who entered Europe by hiding among the wave of Syrian refugees fleeing the war. There may be members of the original network still at large — authorities have never enumerated how many were involved.
Survivors and families of the attacks victims will gather Sunday for anniversary commemorations at each of the attack sites.