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PARIS TERROR ATTACKS

TERRORISM

Paris attacks: Suicide vests mark a new threat

The suicide vests used by Friday's attackers in Paris - a first in France - were made by a highly skilled professional who could still be at large in Europe, intelligence and security experts say.

Published: 15 November 2015 13:00 CET
Paris attacks: Suicide vests mark a new threat
Photo: AFP

All seven of the militants wore identical explosive vests and did not hesitate to blow themselves up – a worrying change of tactic for jihadists targeting France.

Unlike the attacks in London in 2005 where the bombers' explosives were stored in backpacks, Friday's attackers used the sort of suicide vests normally associated with bombings in the Middle East.

“Suicide vests require a munitions specialist. To make a reliable and effective explosive is not something anyone can do,” a former French intelligence chief told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity.

“A munitions specialist is someone who is used to handling explosives, who knows how to make them, to arrange them in a way that the belt or vest is not so unwieldy that the person can't move,” he added. “And it must also not blow up by accident.” 

French authorities say the vests appeared to have been made with TATP, or acetone peroxyde, that is easy for amateurs to make at home but is highly unstable. The vests also included a battery, a detonation button and shrapnel to maximize injuries.

“They didn't bring these vests from Syria: the more you shake these things, the more you multiply the risks,” said the former intelligence chief.  “It's very likely he is here, in France or Europe, one or several guys who
have come back from jihadist areas and who learned over there.”

'Not cannon fodder'

Three specialists contacted by AFP said it was probable the vests were made by someone outside the group that carried out the attacks. “The explosive specialist is too precious. He never participates in attacks,” said Alain Chouet, a former director at France's DGSE external intelligence agency. “So he's around, somewhere.”

“The bomb-maker is not cannon fodder,” added Pierre Martinet, another former DGSE official who now works in corporate security. “He's there to make more suicide vests and allow other guys to carry out
actions.”

Making a vest is extremely complicated. “It can't be done in a couple of days,” said the former intelligence chief.

“It takes weeks of training, and you have to work under the watch of a 'master'. It's meticulous work.”

On the eve of the UN global climate conference in the northern suburbs of Paris later this month, followed by New Year's celebrations and next year's Euro 2016 football championships, concerns are high.

“It's extremely worrying,” said the retired intelligence chief who asked not to be named. “Every service is on tenterhooks.”

PARIS

Fluffy nuisance: Outcry as Paris sends Invalides rabbits into exile

Efforts to relocate wild rabbits that are a common sight on the lawns of the historic Invalides memorial complex have provoked criticism from animal rights groups.

Published: 14 February 2024 13:01 CET
Fluffy nuisance: Outcry as Paris sends Invalides rabbits into exile

Tourists and Parisians have long been accustomed to the sight of wild rabbits frolicking around the lawns of Les Invalides, one of the French capital’s great landmarks.

But efforts are underway to relocate the fluffy animals, accused of damaging the gardens and drains around the giant edifice that houses Napoleon’s tomb, authorities said.

Police said that several dozen bunnies had been captured since late January and relocated to the private estate of Breau in the Seine-et-Marne region outside Paris, a move that has prompted an outcry from animal rights activists.

“Two operations have taken place since 25 January,” the police prefecture told AFP.

“Twenty-four healthy rabbits were captured on each occasion and released after vaccination” in Seine-et-Marne, the prefecture said.

Six more operations are scheduled to take place in the coming weeks.

Around 300 wild rabbits live around Les Invalides, according to estimates.

“The overpopulation on the site is leading to deteriorating living conditions and health risks,” the prefecture said.

Authorities estimate the cost of restoring the site, which has been damaged by the proliferation of underground galleries and the deterioration of gardens, pipes and flora, at €366,000.

Animal rights groups denounced the operation.

The Paris Animaux Zoopolis group said the rabbits were being subjected to “intense stress” or could be killed “under the guise of relocation”.

“A number of rabbits will die during capture and potentially during transport,” said the group, accusing authorities of being “opaque” about their methods.

The animal rights group also noted that Breau was home to the headquarters of the Seine-et-Marne hunting federation.

The police prefecture insisted that the animals would not be hunted.

In 2021, authorities classified the rabbits living in Paris as a nuisance but the order was reversed following an outcry from animal groups who have been pushing for a peaceful cohabitation with the animals.

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