How did the Paris terrorist attack on November 2 happen?

One person was killed and two more were injured by a man armed with a knife and a hammer

The attacker, who was known to the authorities, was taken into custody
Published Last updated

Here is what we know so far about the terrorist attack in Paris on November 2:

On Saturday evening, 26 year-old Armand Rajabpour-Miyandoab, a Franco-Iranian former biology student released a video announcing his intention to commit a terrorist attack.

Minutes later, Rajabpour-Miyandoab, appeared near the Eiffel Tower armed with a hammer and a knife.

At around 21:00 he stabbed a German tourist and immediately fled the scene. The victim, a 24-year-old nurse born in the Philippines, died of his wounds.

Rajabpour-Miyandoab then crossed to the north side of the Seine via the Bir Hakeim bridge.

He was then briefly confronted by police, whom he evaded, shouting “Allah akbar”. BFMTV reports that he told the police he was wearing an explosive vest.

He then attacked two more people: a 66-year-old British tourist, who was struck around the eye with a hammer-like object, and a 60-year-old French man.

Both have since been discharged from hospital.

Rajabpour-Miyandoab was then tasered by the police and taken into custody.

Pic: Visactu / The Connexion

The perpetrator was known to the police and security services, but his complex psychiatric profile “made surveillance more difficult”, said the Prefect of Paris police Laurent Nuñez.

Read more:

Paris tourist murder: knife attacker had been under surveillance

What is the level of risk of a terrorist attack in France now?

What is France’s Vigipirate alert system?