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| Truck attacks in Berlin and Nice reflect change in Isis tactics | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The Berlin killings appear to have been modelled on the Bastille Day truck attack in Nice, a tactic that has become a focus of propaganda by Islamic State over the past month. | The Berlin killings appear to have been modelled on the Bastille Day truck attack in Nice, a tactic that has become a focus of propaganda by Islamic State over the past month. |
| At least 12 people died and dozens were injured on Monday night when a truck was driven into a Christmas market in the centre of the German capital. The chancellor, Angela Merkel, said on Tuesday it had to be assumed “we are dealing with a terrorist attack”. | At least 12 people died and dozens were injured on Monday night when a truck was driven into a Christmas market in the centre of the German capital. The chancellor, Angela Merkel, said on Tuesday it had to be assumed “we are dealing with a terrorist attack”. |
| In terms of both its chosen target and method, the Berlin attack has echoes of the slaughter brought to the French coastal city in July by a Tunisian-born French resident. | In terms of both its chosen target and method, the Berlin attack has echoes of the slaughter brought to the French coastal city in July by a Tunisian-born French resident. |
| In that attack, 86 people were killed and hundreds injured when Mohamed Lahouaiej-Bouhlel drove a 19-tonne lorry down the city’s Promenade des Anglais into a crowd that had gathered for a firework display. | In that attack, 86 people were killed and hundreds injured when Mohamed Lahouaiej-Bouhlel drove a 19-tonne lorry down the city’s Promenade des Anglais into a crowd that had gathered for a firework display. |
| Just as the Christmas market is a cherished fixture of the German national calendar, so too the Bastille Day fireworks are a particularly special occasion for an attack. | Just as the Christmas market is a cherished fixture of the German national calendar, so too the Bastille Day fireworks are a particularly special occasion for an attack. |
| Both are the kind of “soft target” highlighted in November by the US state department, which advised tourists in Europe to “exercise caution at holiday festivals, events, and outdoor markets” for fear terrorists would use “both conventional and non-conventional weapons” to wreak havoc over the Christmas period. | Both are the kind of “soft target” highlighted in November by the US state department, which advised tourists in Europe to “exercise caution at holiday festivals, events, and outdoor markets” for fear terrorists would use “both conventional and non-conventional weapons” to wreak havoc over the Christmas period. |
| In both Nice and Berlin the “non-conventional weapon” was a lorry driven into a crowd of people. | In both Nice and Berlin the “non-conventional weapon” was a lorry driven into a crowd of people. |
| In recent weeks there have been increasing signs that Isis, as it loses ground in Iraq and comes under increased military pressure in Syria, is seeking to strike back by inviting aspiring jihadis in the west to carry out attacks with heavy vehicles. Intelligence agencies across Europe repeatedly caution that it is extremely difficult to anticipate these individual attacks. | In recent weeks there have been increasing signs that Isis, as it loses ground in Iraq and comes under increased military pressure in Syria, is seeking to strike back by inviting aspiring jihadis in the west to carry out attacks with heavy vehicles. Intelligence agencies across Europe repeatedly caution that it is extremely difficult to anticipate these individual attacks. |
| The November edition of the Isis magazine, Rumiyah (Rome), used Nice as an example of the kind of attacks jihadis could carry out “behind enemy lines”. | The November edition of the Isis magazine, Rumiyah (Rome), used Nice as an example of the kind of attacks jihadis could carry out “behind enemy lines”. |
| “Though being an essential part of modern life, very few actually comprehend the deadly and destructive capability of the motor vehicle and its capacity of reaping large numbers of casualties if used in a premeditated manner,” a Rumiyah commentary said. | “Though being an essential part of modern life, very few actually comprehend the deadly and destructive capability of the motor vehicle and its capacity of reaping large numbers of casualties if used in a premeditated manner,” a Rumiyah commentary said. |
| The Rumiyah cover showed pictures of a Hertz rental truck and the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade in New York. | The Rumiyah cover showed pictures of a Hertz rental truck and the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade in New York. |
| On 25 November, French authorities announced the arrest of five people believed to be plotting attacks on a Christmas market on the Champs-Élysées in Paris and at Disneyland Paris. | On 25 November, French authorities announced the arrest of five people believed to be plotting attacks on a Christmas market on the Champs-Élysées in Paris and at Disneyland Paris. |
| The alleged plot in that case was said to involve weapons that had been hidden for use by the attackers. Isis’s new approach appears to reflect an awareness that the use of firearms can make a planned attack vulnerable to being thwarted by western intelligence. The use of trucks is an attempt to avoid that vulnerability. | The alleged plot in that case was said to involve weapons that had been hidden for use by the attackers. Isis’s new approach appears to reflect an awareness that the use of firearms can make a planned attack vulnerable to being thwarted by western intelligence. The use of trucks is an attempt to avoid that vulnerability. |
| The Berlin incident comes after Isis claimed responsibility for two attacks in Germany this year. A 27-year-old Syrian blew himself up in Ansbach in July, killing himself and wounding others. In the same month, a man wielding an axe carried out an attack on a train in Würzburg, injuring four. | The Berlin incident comes after Isis claimed responsibility for two attacks in Germany this year. A 27-year-old Syrian blew himself up in Ansbach in July, killing himself and wounding others. In the same month, a man wielding an axe carried out an attack on a train in Würzburg, injuring four. |