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Louvre Museum Attack: Suspected Terrorist Shot Near Famous Museum [UPDATE]

By Amy Feinstein
Published on: 02:46 PST, Feb 3, 2017

UPDATE 2/3 6:52 P.M.: According to the Telegraph, the man arrested after being shot five times, is Egyptian, and had arrived in France last month. He has been identified as Abdullah Reda Refaei al-Hamamy.

This morning, a suspected terrorist was spotted wielding a machete at the Louvre, and he made a dash toward a group of soldiers in an aggressive manner. It is reported that he was still outside and had not been checked by security. In response, one of the French soldiers opened fire on the potential terrorist.

Serious attacks have been mounted in the last year, and Paris is still reeling from the tragedy at the Bataclan, where many lives were taken. People are wondering just how safe Paris truly is after attacks like the one on Kim Kardashian, who travels with some serious security, according to the Inquisitr. If Kardashian isn’t safe with her team of bodyguards, how is an average person able to move about the city feeling safe.

TMZ says that the attack took place in the early hours of this morning, and luckily, someone is in custody, but his identity is not known. The French Prime Minister has called the attack “terrorist in nature,” but Donald Trump has taken it one step further, tweeting about it.

“A new radical Islamic terrorist. Get smart U.S.”

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The museum was temporarily put on lockdown, and now it is closed for the day. If it was a terrorist plot, it seems to only involve one man, whose plan was foiled as he is in custody. The two backpacks he was carrying did not include explosives.

The Washington Post said that the identity of the man had not been released, but he did yell, “Allahu akbar,” or “God is greatest” in Arabic, before lunging at the French soldier. Like President Trump, who has jumped to the conclusion that a Muslim plot was afoot, Marine Le Pen, the leader of the far-right populist National Front party has taken a similar tack.

“Support our soldiers who are in the front line against the threat and Islamist barbarism.”

The attacker was trying to enter the shopping area of the Louvre rather than the main museum when he pulled his machete. When the man was deemed suspicious and denied entry into the Carrousel du Louvre, the man grew hostile and pulled his knife. The French soldier responded by pulling a gun and firing five rounds into the armed man’s stomach.

The soldier had cuts to the scalp, but he has been released from the hospital, while his attacker is still alive, but hospitalized. At this time, the interior ministry said that a second man has been arrested for the event at the Louvre. Since the attacks of last year, armed uniformed guards now patrol the area in and around the Louvre.

The timing of this attack is curious as the 2024 bid for the Olympic games was set to be released today, says TSN. There were already serious concerns about security around Paris, and this attack will certainly be a factor at today’s press conference at the Eiffel Tour to announce the 2024 bid.

Though many Paris officials connected with the bid for the 2024 Olympic games had denied there were any concerns about security, this new attack will raise more questions. Paris Mayor Mary Ann Hidalgo says that her city does not have a higher level of crime or terrorism than the other cities being considered.

Paris hasn’t hosted the Olympics since 1924. They are competing against Budapest and Los Angeles. The International Olympic Committee will choose the host city in September, but the committee was making the announcement to go forward with the Paris bid this afternoon.

Do you think this attack at the Louvre had anything to do with the Paris Olympic bid?

[Featured Image by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images]

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