Two more arrested over Nice attack

Paris, July 17: French authorities on Sunday arrested a man and a woman in connection with the Bastille Day lorry attack in Nice that killed 84 persons, CNN quoted a prosecutor as saying. The arrests were confirmed by Agnes Thibault Lecuivre, a spokeswoman for the anti–terrorism prosecutor. Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel, 31, drove a 20–tonne truck through hundreds gathered to watch the Bastille Day fireworks on the Mediterranean city’s waterfront on Thursday night. Bouhlel was shot to death by police after he barreled down the crowded Promede des Anglais for almost a mile on Friday, crushing and hitting people who had gathered to watch fireworks, CNN reported. The Islamic State (IS) terror group has claimed responsibility of the attack. On Saturday, French authorities arrested three people on Saturday and two on Friday for their suspected involvement. The detained included Bouhlel’s estranged wife. RAID — a special operations unit of French police — and the Research and Intervention Brigade (BRI) of the judicial police participated in carrying out these arrests. Earlier on Sunday, France called up 12,000 police reservists to boost security in the wake of the killings. Initial investigations showed that the Tunisian perpetrator, who was killed by the security forces, was “radicalised very quickly”, according to French Interior Minister Berrd Cazeneuve. (IANS)