 "People hug on the street near the Bataclan concert hall following fatal attacks in Paris on Friday. photo: reuters")
France declared a state of national emergency and sealed its borders after terrorists belonging to the Islamic State killed more than 120 people in seven coordinated attacks across Paris.
This is the second time this year that terror has struck the French capital city: the first being the bloodshed at the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo, in January.
Possibly the worst terrorist incident in Europe since the 2004 Madrid bombings, Friday's attacks have cast a shadow on the G-20 meeting starting on Sunday in Turkey and the climate change talks scheduled in Paris later this month.
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SHOCK & HORROR About 120 people were killed and 200 injured in Paris |
Note: All figures are estimated |
Though no Indian was reported to be among the dead or the injured, Mumbai - worst affected by terrorism - was put on a high alert. Security experts in United States said that Friday night's attacks in Paris are a "copycat" version of the 2008 terror attack in Mumbai.
In Paris, the seven attacks were carried out by at least eight gunmen wearing suicide vests.
Around 9:30 pm (2 am on Saturday, India time), an explosion was heard outside Strade de France, on the northern fringes of Paris, where President Hollande was watching a friendly international match between France and Germany. There were two suicide attacks and one bombing at the venue, including one at a McDonald's restaurant right outside the stadium.
There were also attacks on two restaurants - Le Petit Cambodge and Le Carillon - both in Rue Bichat, in the city's 10th arrondissement, and on La Belle Equipe bar in Rue de Charonne and Boulevard Voltaire, near the Bataclan concert hall.
Three terrorists took more than 100 people hostage at Bataclan, where US band Eagles of Death Metal was performing. Four terrorists and at least 82 audience members were killed as the French police stormed the venue. "As we went to our car we saw dozens of people running out of the Bataclan," local resident Caterina Giardino, an Italian national, said of the 19th century theatre-turned-music venue.
Universal, the band's label, has issued a statement saying the members and crew are safe. At a short distance from the Bataclan, the terrace of the Casa Nostra pizzeria in Rue de la Fontaine au Roi was also a target.
Parisians responded with bravery and generosity. Soon after the first shooting they started using #PorteOuverte (Open Door) on Twitter to let people stranded on the roads know that they could find shelter in their homes.
The attack would be on the top of the agenda of the G-20 meeting starting on Sunday in Turkey, which will be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "Terrorism is the national security threat to Europe," said Rohan Gunaratna, head, International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research in Singapore.
The terror attack is likely to increase the burden of security and logistics for the climate change negotiations in Paris starting November 30. Le Monde had quoted Pierre-Henri Guignard, the general secretary of the meeting, that will be attended by 40,000-50,000 delegates, "We will hold a crisis meeting with the team."
