Friday night’s terror attacks in Paris apparently began with a small extremist cell in Brussels, Belgium, where French authorities believe that the attacks were planned out and the operation financed, according to two U.S. federal law enforcement officials who have been advised about the ongoing French probe.
The U.S. sources, speaking confidentially because the investigation is just underway, stressed also that the attackers likely had a substantial understanding of French history culture and Paris in particular, and that it was “highly possible” some had lived in the French capital.
That, the sources said, was evident in how they seamlessly moved about the vast Paris metropolis and set up coordinated attacks at six separate targets ”“ from a stadium to a theater to a restaurant.
When Mumbai was attacked, Indians held their breath for fear that it might have been home-grown terrorists. There was some relief to discover it was essentially a Pakistani invasion. The French are right to be worried by terrorists who come from among them.
And of course there is worry that an attack of this type could happen in the USA.
I was in France on 9/11/01. French people, hearing our American voices, expressed their sympathy and said they had prayed for our country. I now return the favor. May God receive the souls of the innocent dead. May God turn the hearts of those who love terror and death. Vive la France.