It was November 13, 2015 when Paris turned into a theater of terror: within hours, a series of coordinated Islamist attacks led to the death of 132 people – among them Italian Valeria Solesin – and injured 350 others.
At 21.16 the first explosion occurred at the Stade de France
It all started at around 20.45 at the Stade de France, in Saint-Denisa few minutes before the France-Germany friendly match. Here the first commandos, led by Salah Abdeslam, the mastermind of the operation, who is now in prison, arrived near the stadium where he left three terrorists at the scene before leaving again. The match starts at 9 p.m. One of the terrorists sat on the outdoor terrace of a restaurant adjacent to the stadium. At 9.16pm he activated the explosive belt he was wearing. Inside the stadium, around 80 thousand spectators and players heard a loud explosion, but the match continued. Many people think about firecrackers. Outside, the explosion killed one person and injured three others.
The second explosion raised doubts. Patrice Evra, who had the ball, looked at the stands anxiously. However, the Les Bleus left-back continued to play. Just after 21.20, the second terrorist blew himself up in front of one of the stadium gates. He injured several people, one of them seriously. Shortly thereafter, the media began broadcasting news of shootings that occurred on the terraces of bars and restaurants in the 10th and 11th arrondissements.
President François Hollande was also at the stadium. A big football fan, he was completely engrossed in the match when the first explosion occurred. “We didn’t want to believe that it was a sign of an attack in progress” and the episode was linked to fans gathering outside the stadium, he told YouTuber Gaspard G. years later. “But when we heard a second explosion a few minutes later, there was no longer any doubt.”
Attack on cafe terrace in Paris
Around the thirtieth minute of the match, the head of the presidential security service informed Hollande that there was one person dead outside the stadium, maybe even two. François Hollande waited until half-time and then reached security headquarters to see pictures of the outside of the stadium, where the chaos occurred. At the same time, he was notified another attack, targeting a cafe terrace inside Paris. The number of deaths continues to increase by the minute. “I asked the Minister of the Interior, Bernard Cazeneuve, to come to the Stade de France and asked Manuel Valls (then prime minister) to prepare all the necessary decisions before I could contact him at the Ministry of the Interior.” “Then I took the decision not to stop the match,” he continued.
Everything is done to keep the audience seated and the game continuing. The internet connection is not working properly, the spectators and players will remain cut off from the world until the final whistle is blown. The head of state returned to the presidential gallery and informed then-German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and National Assembly president Claude Bartolone, who were also present at the match, asking them to remain in their seats to prevent the public from suspecting something serious and trying to leave the stadium, thereby exposing themselves to another potential danger.
First shooting in Paris
Minutes after the attack on the Stade de France, The first shooting in Paris was near the two restaurants Le Carillon, on Rue Alibert, and Le Petit Cambodge, on Rue Bichat. Four terrorists (Abdelhamid Abaaoud, Chakib Akrouh, Brahim Abdeslam and possibly his younger brother Salah Abdeslam) in the car fired their AK-47s, detonating about 100 rounds, praising Syria and Iraq. They caused 13 deaths and 10 serious injuries.
Second and third shooting
Moments later, one second shot, near Café Bonne Bière and pizzeria Casa Nostraon the Rue de la Fontaine au Roi. This shooting left 5 people dead and 8 people injured; third shooting, in front of La Belle Équipe restauranton the rue de Charonne, in the 11th arrondissement, leaving 21 dead and 9 injured.
At Bataclan
Eventually, shortly before 10 p.m., three terrorists entered the Bataclanwhere the concert of the American rock band Eagles of Death Metal is taking place, shooting into the audience. They arrived carrying magazine bags, AK-47s, rifles, several hand grenades and explosive belts. The siege will end after the invasion of special forces. 90 people died in the attack. President Hollande appeared live on TV and officially declared in his speech a state of emergency throughout the country and the temporary closure of borders.
