Carcassonne and Trèbes attack

On 23 March 2018, there was a series of Islamist terrorist attacks in the towns of Carcassonne and Trèbes in southern France. 

Background
Redouane Lakdim, a 25-year-old French-Moroccan, shot the two occupants of a car in Carcassonne, killing the passenger and hijacking it. He then opened fire on four police officers, seriously wounding one. Lakdim drove to nearby Trèbes, where he stormed a Super U supermarket, killing two civilians, wounding others, and taking at least one hostage. 

A senior gendarme, Lt. Col. Arnaud Beltrame, voluntarily swapped places with a hostage. After a three-hour stand-off, Lakdim fatally shot and stabbed Beltrame. A police tactical unit immediately stormed the building and killed Lakdim. He was named a "soldier of the Islamic State" by the Amaq News Agency, and the President of France called the attacks an act of Islamist terrorism. 

Motive
Lakdim swore allegiance to the Islamic State and demanded the release of Salah Abdeslam, the only surviving suspect of the November 2015 Paris attacks. 

Aftermath
Five people were killed in the attacks, including the perpetrator, and fifteen were wounded.

For his actions, Beltrame was hailed as a hero. Macron said that Beltrame deserved "the respect and admiration of the whole nation.".

References

Category:2018 crimes in Europe
Category:2010s crimes in France
Category:2010s murders in Europe
Category:Islamic terrorist incidents in Europe
Category:March 2018 events
Category:Murder in 2018
Category:Murder in France
Category:Terrorist incidents in 2018
Category:Terrorist incidents in France
Category:2018 in France
Category:Carcassonne