You have commented 339 times on Rantburg.

Your Name
Your e-mail (optional)
Website (optional)
My Original Nic        Pic-a-Nic        Sorry. Comments have been closed on this article.
Bold Italic Underline Strike Bullet Blockquote Small Big Link Squish Foto Photo
Submit your comments on this article
Europe
French soldier stabbed while on patrol near Paris
2013-05-26
More details from yesterday's incident and post.
PARIS - A French soldier patrolling a business neighborhood west of Paris was stabbed in the neck and injured on Saturday by a man who fled the scene and is being sought by police, President Francois Hollande said.

The 23-year-old was patrolling in uniform with two other soldiers as part of France's Vigipirate anti-terror surveillance plan when he was approached from behind around 6 p.m. and attacked with a knife or a box-cutter.

A police union spokesman said surveillance footage of the attacker showed him as tall and bearded, aged about 35, possibly of North African origin and wearing a white Arab-style tunic.
So he must be a tourist...
Hollande, in the Ethiopian city of Addis Ababa, commented on the stabbing to say police were hunting for the attacker but did not provide any details about his identity or any possible motivation for the attack.
No, no clue about motive whatsoever...
"We still don't know the exact circumstances of the attack or the identity of the attacker, but we are exploring all options," Hollande told journalists.
Exploring all motives indeed, except for the obvious one...
Three days after a British soldier was killed in a London street by two men who said they acted to avenge violence against Muslims, the attack near Paris raised questions about a possible copycat attempt to kill a French soldier.

Interior Minister Manuel Valls noted the similarity in an interview on France 2 TV saying the attacker was clearly trying to murder his victim, but he added that it was too early to offer any theories.

"Let's be prudent for now," Valls said of the attacker's identity and motivations. "Everything is being done to arrest this individual."

Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told journalists near the site of the attack: "The soldier was attacked because he is a soldier."

Pierre-Andre Peyvel, police prefect for the Hauts-de-Seine area west of Paris, said the soldier had lost a considerable amount of blood but would survive, and was being treated in a nearby military hospital.

Witnesses near the commuter train station where the attack occurred gave conflicting descriptions of the fleeing suspect. One asserted on TV that he saw two men fleeing, while another said the scene was too confused to tell.

Peyvel declined to confirm or deny any description and said further details would be forthcoming. A source said police would broadcast the man's likeness if no arrest was made soon.
Why not broadcast the likeness now to help with a quick arrest?
Valls said France would retain its current terror alert level at "red, reinforced", one step down from "scarlet", which is only activated in case of a serious and confirmed attack.
Posted by:Steve White

#6  Thanks for the thanks. Thinking about it if they gave cellphones to the soldiers the police would arrive sooner as them being able to extract the magazine from first pouch, then from the second sealed one, the inserting magazine and cocking weapon.
Posted by: JFM   2013-05-26 17:24  

#5  I've never understood this unloaded weapon nonsense. An unloaded rifle is just an elaborate club. Might as well give them cellphones to call the police. Only minutes away...

Thanks to JFM for the details.
Posted by: SteveS   2013-05-26 12:44  

#4  thx JFM - my first thought was that they prolly were carrying unloaded weapons
Posted by: Frank G   2013-05-26 09:15  

#3  The ROEs are a recipe for arming the other side. It just takes a couple really armed (locked and loaded) to relieve anyone in the patrols of their unloaded main weapons. Get the drop on the NCO/Officer with the one gun and the rest will follow.

If you don't trust your soldiers, don't put them out there.

If you give them a rifle, give them the ammunition that goes with it.
Posted by: Procopius2k   2013-05-26 08:21  

#2  ROEs are:

1) Three men patrols
2) Only the patrol lader has a loaded weeapon.
3) This loaded weapon is usually a pistol. Rarely a FAMAS (assault rifle in the M16 class);
4) the two other members have FAMAS but nomagazine in them. Magazines are in pouches carried t the belt and in addditionthey are wrapped in sealed plastic pouchs.
5)Unless you had a vey good reason for oing so Thre will be hell to pay for both the soldier and the leade if at the end of patrol magazines are not in their sealed pouches
6) I don't remembe if the FAMASes have fixed bayonnets
Posted by: JFM   2013-05-26 05:05  

#1  The relative safety of my armchair, this appears to be an urban combat patrol TTP rear security lapse. Yes, a blinding flash, but in need of saying nonetheless. I doubt the French will permit a reoccurrence.

Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told journalists near the site of the attack: "The soldier was attacked because he is a soldier."

Not at all certain I agree with the Defense Minister's assessment.
Posted by: Besoeker   2013-05-26 01:47  

00:00