NEWS

TERRORIST ATTACKS IN PARIS

A state of emergency has been declared across France after attacks in Paris that killed at least 128 people. Also, 200 people were injured, 90 of them seriously. Eight assailants had died, seven of them had killed themselves with explosive belts at various locations and one had been shot dead by police. President François Holland said was an "act of war" organized by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group.

France was on high alert for attacks because of a video that the ISIL group released on Saturday saying that they would attack France if France continued bombing of its fighters in the Middle East. They literally said “As long as you keep bombing you will not live in peace. You will even fear travelling to the market".

Yesterday, at night, the attacks began. The deadliest attack was on the Bataclan, a popular concert hall where group Eagles of Death Metal was performing. Four gunmen armed with explosive belts killed at least 80 young people who were attending to a rock concert at the Bataclan music hall. Luckily, dozens of survivors were rescued and the attackers were killed at the site. About 40 more people were killed in five other attacks in the Paris region. 14 of them were killed while they were at the restaurant Le Petit Cambodge by a gunman who opened fire with a Kalashnikov. There were five more locations in close proximity where shootings took place around the same time and killed more people, like bars or restaurants.

One of them happened near the Stade de France in the northern suburb of Saint-Denis, where the France-Germany friendly soccer match was being played. The President Hollande and the German foreign minister were watching it when the attacks occurred. The explosions were audible on television during the live broadcast. Police helicopters circled the stadium and Holland left to the interior ministry to deal with the situation. The match continued until the end, but people found out what was going on in the streets of Paris. At the end of the match, everyone got on the pitch for security reasons. 

This morning, France has woken up with security all across the capital, with about 1500 soldiers deployed in Paris. Also, all public transportation services have been cancelled. Residents in Paris were asked to stay indoors for precaution.

Barack Obama (USA), David Cameron (GB) and Angela Merkel (Germany) were all very shocked by the events in Paris and offered France their help. The leaders of other countries also gave their condolences for the French people in general. Also, the people around the world has sent support and their condolences to France and the French people using hashtags like #prayforparis, #jesuisparis and others through social media.

PERSONAL OPINION:

What happened in Paris was a terrible thing. It died a lot of innocent people. I just wanted to say that maybe we are giving a lot of attention to France because it’s “an important country” because these type of things (terrorist attacks) happens EVERYDAY around the world, specially in Syria. Also, in the same week that happened the terrorist attacks in France, it happened the same type of attacks in Beirut and in other countries. But France captured all the attention. All lives mean the same, have the same value; or it is better a French person that any other? The skin color or the religion didn’t make us different (or less important).

With this, I don’t want to say that what happened in Paris it’s not important. Of course it is! And it was a horrible thing. I just want to say that we are very hypocrite if we thing that what happened in France it’s more important than what happens to the other countries around the world that we consider “inferior” than us. A life is a life. And all lifes are equal.


 NEW WORDS:

- Gunman: persona armada
- Manhunt: cacera / recerca 
- Flank: flanquejar (estar al costat o rodejar a una persona o objecte)


Link: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/11/reports-shooting-restaurant-central-paris-151113211237312.html