Two police officers were injured in Toulouse, France, after a man shouting “Allahu Akbar” attacked them with multiple knives during a patrol.
| PULSE POINTS |
❓ WHAT HAPPENED: A man was subdued after shouting “Allahu Akbar” and attacked two police officers, one of whom was female, in France. 📺 DETAIL: On Monday, a man attacked two police officers with a knife in the Wilson district of Toulouse, France. The officers were on patrol when a man slashed one of the officers in the throat with a knife. The female officer was also stabbed three times. The attacker shouted “Allahu Akbar” during the incident, according to local police reports. The attacker pulled out two additional knives after dropping his first, but was subsequently restrained after being subdued by police with telescopic batons. The officer who was slashed in the neck required stitches, while the female officer avoided serious injury due to her bulletproof vest. 💬 KEY QUOTE: “[The officers came within] a hair’s breadth of the worst,” said Emilion Esnault, a French local politician, describing the attack. 🎯 IMPACT: An investigation into the attack is ongoing. Local police have also been ordered to remain on high alert until further notice. The fact that the attacker shouted “Allahu Akbar” suggests an Islamist motive. This represents a recurring problem in France, which has experienced multiple Islamist attacks this year. Back in July, a man claimed “it is Allah who ordered me” after stabbing three women in Paris. The three women, one of whom was pregnant, sustained non-lethal injuries. Such attacks are likely to drive support for parties offering a tough law and order stance, measures to bolster national security, immigration restrictions, and anti-Islamist policies, particularly Marine Le Pen’s National Rally (RN). This is far from solely a French problem, however, as other European countries have suffered similar attacks throughout the year. Also in July, Berlin Pride in Germany was hit by an Islamist attack that left one dead and at least 29 injured. The attacker was known for a “high volume of criminal offenses, radicalization, and affiliation with the Islamist scene,“ according to German officials. |
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