A jihadist attack on Strasbourg's Christmas market killed five and exposed vulnerabilities in monitoring known extremist suspects.
Key Facts
- Date of attack
- 11 December 2018
- Killed
- 5 people
- Wounded
- 11 people
- Attacker
- Chérif Chekatt, age 29
- Manhunt duration
- 2 days (ended 13 December 2018)
- Officers in manhunt
- 700 officers
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Chérif Chekatt, a 29-year-old French national with multiple criminal convictions, was on a security services watchlist as a suspected Islamist extremist. He had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), motivating him to carry out a violent attack.
On the evening of 11 December 2018, Chekatt attacked civilians at Strasbourg's Christkindelsmärik Christmas market using a revolver and a knife, killing five people and wounding 11 others before fleeing the scene in a taxi.
French authorities launched a two-day manhunt involving 700 officers before Chekatt was killed in a shootout with police on 13 December 2018. The attack heightened debate in France about the surveillance and management of individuals flagged as potential extremist threats.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Side B
1 belligerent