SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
France has declared a national state of emergency and has closed its borders after at least 40 people were killed in multiple shootings in Paris.
At least 15 people were killed near the Bataclan arts centre, where up to 60 people are being held hostage. Explosions and gunfire are reported.
Three people were killed in an attack near the Stade de France, with some reports suggesting a suicide blast.
Paris authorities have urged people to stay indoors.
Military personnel are being deployed across Paris.
http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2015/11/13/455943961/violence-reported-in-paris
http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/13/world/paris-shooting/index.html
Update #1 [BBC updates]:
Scores of people have been killed in multiple gun and bomb attacks in Paris
At least 100 people are reported to have died inside the Bataclan concert hall in central Paris
Others died in attacks near the Stade de France, where France were playing Germany, and at restaurants
France has declared a national state of emergency and has closed its borders
Paris residents have been asked to stay indoors and military personnel are being deployed across the city
[...] Reuters. quoting an un-named official at Paris City Hall, says the current death toll in Paris is around 140.
According to the Paris prosecutor, of the four assailants who died during the sidge at the Bataclan, three committed suicide by detonating explosive vests. The prosecutor has warned that some of their accomplices may "still be on the loose".
[...] Here is what French president François Hollande told reporters outside the Bataclan concert hall just now: "To all those who have seen these awful things, I want to say we are going to lead a war which will be pitiless. Because when terrorists are capable of committing such atrocities they must be certain that they are facing a determined France, a united France, a France that is together and does not let itself be moved, even if today we express infinite sorrow."
(Score: 1) by tftp on Saturday November 14 2015, @03:05AM
It's a valid question. But what is the answer?
I can comment that USSR maintained a heavily fortified border around most of the country for what, 80 years? Perhaps there are people still alive who can become advisers on such matters. Technicalities can always be taken care of. This will close access to those who have no valid travel documents, and who had not been properly vetted. This will not stop a dedicated, well prepared terrorist with perfectly made documents. But this will stop thousands who cannot afford the passports and who will never be given visas. In other words, this will stop the soldiers. Guess who did the carnage in Paris? Not the lone mastermind; it was done by his disposable soldiers. The mastermind may be in another country already.
Arrivals that go through proper border crossings (airports) are not a concern as much. They all have passports with visas, and they are not carrying anything dangerous in their backpacks. But if you have an open border... here is your channel of delivery of 10,000 AKMs from Libyan depots direct into the EU. If ten or fifteen suiciders did what they did last night, what can ten thousand do? ISIS has fourty thousand, they are currently fighting for Syrian sands - but they can be moved from there on a moment's notice if need be; Syria is hardly a rich prize.
(Score: 3, Funny) by gman003 on Saturday November 14 2015, @03:43AM
Arrivals that go through proper border crossings (airports) are not a concern as much. They all have passports with visas, and they are not carrying anything dangerous in their backpacks.
I can't believe it, it's finally happened. Everyone kept warning you not to, but you did.
You actually forgot 9/11.
(Score: 2) by kurenai.tsubasa on Saturday November 14 2015, @04:28AM
Damn it. I blow my last mod point before seeing this one.
This is /thread, folks. Mod to +∞, hit the fucking nail on the fucking head.
(Score: 1) by tftp on Saturday November 14 2015, @04:29AM
You actually forgot 9/11.
No. There was no defense against 9/11 at that time. There is a bit more today. Arrival of those Saudis into the USA was entirely legitimate, and nothing could have been done at that point to stop them. Even their activities on learning to fly were not illegal.
In their case, preventing them from coming would have caused more harm in form of self-isolation than it would have done good. The terrorists would simply wade across the river from Mexico. There is absolutely nothing that one can - or should - do to stop a young student or engineer if he is not known to be bad. The only advantage of restricting access to border crossings is in fact that it requires people with cleaner biography to get a visa. Those Saudis were not bums found in a back yard of a mosque. They were the best. There is always shortage of those. Among the 40,000 soldiers of ISIS in Syria you may find maybe a few who are of the same background and can be cleared to come to the USA.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Saturday November 14 2015, @12:20PM
"There was no defense against 9/11 at that time."
I strongly disagree. There were defenses, and we CHOSE not to defend ourselves.
"Even their activities on learning to fly were not illegal."
An activity need not be illegal to raise red flags. And, red flags were waved at the FBI, among other agencies tasked to track terrorists.
Worst of all, the United States had received intelligence that terrorists were thinking about flying airplanes into buildings. The "chatter" was out there, and we ignored it.
Bottom line, we were asleep at the wheel, and the Saudis took advantage of us.