The French president said he was extending a state of emergency in the country by three months. President Francois Hollande has said a lorry attack on a Bastille Day crowd in the southern French city of Nice was of a "terrorist nature".
President Francois Hollande said the attack was of "an undeniable terrorist nature".A state of emergency, in place since November's Paris attacks, has been extended by three months.
"France is badly hit," Mr Hollande said, adding that "we need to do everything we can to fight against" such attacks. "All of France is under the threat of Islamic terrorism," he said, adding that several children were among the dead. And he decided "operational reserves" would be deployed to support the army and security forces across the country, with particular focus on the borders.
One image on Twitter showed about a dozen people lying on the street. Interior Ministry spokesman Pierre-Henry Brandet denied earlier reports of hostage situations and said the driver of the lorry had been "neutralized". He added that officials were investigating whether the driver acted alone. No group has so far claimed responsibility; however prosecutors said the inquiry would be handled by anti-terror investigators.
To be noted, at least 84 people have died, including children, about 50 people were injured, 18 of them critically, in the incident on Thursday, which was Bastille Day - France's national day. That happens after a lorry slammed through a crowd celebrating a holy day in the southern French city of Nice. The driver ploughed on for 2km on the Promenade des Anglais at about 23:00 local time, before being shot dead by police.
