Dijon, France: Man Shouting ‘Allahu Akbar’ (God Is The Greatest) Plows Car Into Crowds Of People

A man shouting “God Is Great!” (or “God Is The Greatest!” depending upon the translation) in Arabic has been arrested after repeatedly plowing his car into groups of people in an apparent series of terrorist attacks in Dijon, France, Sky News is reporting.

A source familiar with the investigation told Sky News that the unnamed man was familiar to authorities.

“The man, born in 1974, is apparently unbalanced and had been in a psychiatric hospital… For now his motives are still unclear”.

According to another unnamed source via The Jerusalem Post, the terrorist attack was, fortunately, not fatal.

“Nine people were lightly injured and two others seriously but their lives do not appear to be in danger.”

Witnesses said that the man was shouting “Allahu Akbar!” — an Arabic phrase that has sometimes been used as a battle cry for jihadists and terrorists. He also reportedly shouted that he was carrying out the terrorist attack “for the children of Palestine.”

This is the second terrorist attack in two days in France. On Saturday, police in the French town of Joue-les Tours shot dead a terrorist who stabbed three police officers in a police station, also while shouting “Allahu Akbar!” That man, a 20-year-old convert to Islam, had also been known to authorities.

Since the emergence of ISIS, several terrorists in different countries have carried out so-called “lone wolf” terrorist attacks on random targets, as the jihadist group — which now controls large portions of Iraq and Syria — have been urging them to do. Unlike the organized and meticulously-planned terrorist attacks such as the September 11 attacks in the U.S. and the 2004 Madrid train bombing, both of which involved several terrorists working together and required months to plan, these recent terrorist attacks have involved single men acting alone, apparently targeting random people.

One such attack took place in Ottawa, Canada in October of this year. According to this Inquisitr report, 25-year-old Muslim, Martin Couture-Rouleau, ran over two soldiers in his vehicle, killing one, in an attack he said he “carried out in the name of Allah.”

As of this post, it is unclear if today’s terrorist attack in France was the result of an ISIS sympathizer, or simply a random act of violence carried out by a disturbed individual. According to Expatica, the French anti-terrorism unit is considering both today’s terrorist attack, and Saturday’s as being motivated by radical Islam.

[Image courtesy of: Sky News]