Three People Killed in Nice Notre Dame Basilica Terror Attack, Suspect Shot By Police

Three people have been killed by a man armed with a knife inside the Notre Dame Basilica in the French city of Nice. The killings are being treated as an act of terrorism.

According to reports from The BBC, the victims were two women and a man. The suspect was shot in the shoulder and taken to the hospital following the attack.

The Guardian reported that one victim, a 70-year-old female, was beheaded inside the church and that the male victim was reported to be a churchwarden at Notre Dame. A 40-year-old woman, who escaped after sustaining injuries, later died.

The suspect entered the Notre Dame Basilica at 9 a.m. on Thursday, October 29 and was apprehended by police by 9:10 a.m. after reportedly shouting “Allahu Akbar” numerous times before his arrest.

Police in the city immediately locked down the city center and the national anti-terrorist prosecutor confirmed that an investigation into the event has begun.

Nice Mayor Christian Estrosi confirmed that the attack was a terrorist incident and added details of the events while also condemning the ongoing issue of terrorists linked to extremist Islamic groups in the country.

“We have two people killed inside the church … and a third person who was in a bar facing the church where she had taken refuge. Enough is enough … we have to remove this Islamo-fascism from our territory.” Estrosi said following the attack.

David Olivier Reverdy, from the French police union Alliance Police Nationale, praised the quick actions of the police when apprehending the assailant to prevent any further harm to the residents of Nice.

“We should recognise that police officers, municipal and national, were quickly at the scene and were able to neutralise the individual before he could cause any further injuries or deaths,” he said.

The police have taken fingerprints of the attacker to establish whether he was known to any French security services prior to the incident. They are also examining CCTV footage in Nice to understand his movements in the lead-up to the killings.

Two hours after the Nice killings, a similar occurrence took place in Montfavet, Avignon, where a man was reportedly threatening residents with a weapon. According to The Independent, he was shot dead by police after threatening people with a handgun.

The incidents in Nice and Montfavet add to the growing number of terrorism incidents in France. The Inquisitr previously reported on an 18-year-old suspect who beheaded a Paris schoolteacher Samuel Paty on October 18 after he showed his class images of the prophet Muhammed.