A convicted ISIS-linked terrorist died in a Paris hospital after attempting to stab police officers near the Arc de Triomphe, raising serious questions about surveillance failures just weeks after his prison release.
Attack at Historic Monument
Brahim Bahrir, 48, launched his assault during the weekly flame rekindling ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier beneath the famous landmark. Armed with a kitchen knife and scissors, the French citizen attacked officers during the traditional 6:30 PM ceremony that has honored fallen French soldiers since 1923. A second officer at the scene fired four shots, with three striking Bahrir in the torso and leg, before he was rushed to Georges Pompidou European Hospital.
Social media footage captured the aftermath, showing Bahrir slumped against a police van surrounded by officers. He died from his wounds within hours, according to investigating sources. No other individuals were injured during the incident, which occurred at one of Paris’s most visited tourist destinations.
History of Terror Convictions
Born in 1978 in Mantes-la-Jolie, Bahrir had previously stabbed three police officers in Brussels on June 8, 2012, telling prosecutors he wanted to punish them for restrictions on Muslim women wearing burqas. The attacks occurred in an underground train station in Molenbeek, a Brussels suburb. He served as a leading member of Sharia4Belgium, an extremist group that recruited fighters for ISIS in Syria before being classified as a terrorist organization and banned in 2016.
Surveillance System Breakdown
Belgian courts sentenced Bahrir to 17 years in prison for attempted murder connected to terrorist activities, illegal weapons possession, and armed rebellion. He was later transferred to a French prison and released on Christmas Eve, December 24. Despite being flagged as radicalized and potentially dangerous with a requirement to report daily to police, Bahrir called authorities Friday morning, threatening to shoot soldiers. France’s National Anti-Terrorist Prosecutor’s Office has opened an investigation into attempted assassination and participation in a criminal terrorist association, highlighting ongoing challenges in monitoring released terror convicts.