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Man Who Stabbed Tourist in Paris Swore Allegiance to Islamic State Group, Say French Anti-Terrorist Prosecutors

The man responsible for the fatal stabbing of a tourist near the Eiffel Tower in Paris has been found to have pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group in a video shared on social media, according to French anti-terrorist prosecutors. The attacker, known to authorities as a radicalized Islamist, had connections on social media with individuals involved in recent attacks in France. He was also under close psychological surveillance due to mental health concerns, stated senior prosecutor Jean-Francois Ricard in a press conference.

Ricard further revealed that the attacker’s mother had expressed concerns about her son’s behavior as recently as October, but at that time, there was insufficient evidence to take legal action. The incident occurred late on Saturday, when France was already on high alert due to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, coupled with a series of apparent lone-wolf attacks in the country.

The assailant has been identified as Armand Rajabpour-Miyandoab, a French national born in 1997 to Iranian parents. He used a hammer and a knife to fatally attack a 23-year-old German-Filipino citizen around 9:30 pm. Shouting “Allahu Akbar” (God is greatest), Rajabpour-Miyandoab fled across the Bir Hakeim bridge after a taxi driver intervened. He encountered a police patrol on the other side, where he falsely claimed to be wearing an explosive belt before fleeing again. During his escape, he struck two passers-by with the hammer, a 66-year-old British citizen and a 60-year-old French person. The attacker was eventually apprehended with the use of a taser and taken into custody.

In response to the incident, Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne and other ministers convened for a security meeting on Sunday. Borne emphasized that “we will not give in to terrorism” in a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter).

Contact with Other Attackers

“In late October 2023, the attacker’s mother reported concerns about her son’s behavior, as he had become increasingly withdrawn. However, no evidence was found at that time to support a new legal prosecution,” explained Ricard during the press conference.

Rajabpour-Miyandoab’s X account, created in early October, contained numerous posts related to Hamas, Gaza, and Palestine in general, according to the prosecutor. It was on this platform that the attacker shared a video in Arabic, identifying himself as an Islamic State fighter based in Afghanistan.

“In the video, he pledged allegiance to the Islamic State and expressed his support for jihadists in various regions, including Africa, Iraq, Syria, the Sinai, Yemen, and Pakistan,” Ricard revealed.

Prosecutors disclosed that Rajabpour-Miyandoab, who came from a non-religious family, had converted to Islam at the age of 18 and had immersed himself in extensive IS propaganda. In 2016, he had plans to join the Islamic State group in Iraq or Syria. Notably, he was Facebook friends with an individual who later murdered two police officers in their home in Magnanville, located outside Paris. However, there were no direct message exchanges between the two. Subsequently, Rajabpour-Miyandoab was arrested for planning an attack and served four years in prison. Following his release, he was closely monitored due to his social media connections, which included the future killer of teacher Samuel Paty, who was beheaded outside his school in 2020 by an Islamist attacker. Additionally, the attacker had been undergoing compulsory psychiatric treatment for mental health issues until April of this year.

Health Minister Aurelien Rousseau clarified that Rajabpour-Miyandoab was not hospitalized for his mental health problems but was under surveillance. Rousseau acknowledged that cases like these often involve a combination of ideology, easily influenced individuals, and psychiatric conditions.

Aside from the attacker, three individuals belonging to the perpetrator’s family or social circle were also in custody as of Sunday afternoon, as per Ricard’s statement.

High Tensions

Following the security meeting, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin stressed the need for authorities to have the ability to request compulsory treatment for individuals with mental health issues who are suspected of radicalization. Darmanin asserted that France continues to face a long-term threat from radical Islamism and called for a robust legal response.

France has experienced various attacks by Islamist extremists, including the November 2015 suicide and gun assaults in Paris, which claimed the lives of 130 people and were claimed by the Islamic State group. Although there had been a relative decrease in such incidents in recent years, officials have repeatedly warned that the threat remains. Tensions have escalated in France, home to significant Jewish and Muslim populations, following the unprecedented attack by Hamas on Israel in October, followed by Israel’s subsequent bombardment of the Gaza Strip.

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