November 2015 Paris attacks — series of terrorist attacks in Paris, France, Europe, on November 13, 2015
The deadliest terrorist attack in French history, killing 130 people across multiple coordinated sites in Paris on 13 November 2015.
Key Facts
- Total killed
- 130 civilians plus 7 attackers
- Injured
- 416, nearly 100 critically
- Bataclan theatre deaths
- 90
- Attack sites
- Stade de France, cafés/restaurants, Bataclan theatre
- Lead operative killed
- Abdelhamid Abaaoud, 18 November 2015
- State of emergency duration
- 3 months
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
The Islamic State claimed the attacks were retaliation for French airstrikes on IS targets in Syria and Iraq. France had been on heightened alert since the January 2015 Charlie Hebdo and kosher supermarket attacks. The plot was planned in Syria and organised by a Belgium-based terrorist cell; most perpetrators were French or Belgian nationals who had fought in Syria.
On the evening of 13 November 2015, three coordinated groups of attackers struck Paris and Saint-Denis: suicide bombers targeted the Stade de France during a football match, gunmen opened fire on crowded cafés and restaurants, and a third group conducted a mass shooting and hostage siege at the Bataclan theatre during an Eagles of Death Metal concert. Police eventually stormed the Bataclan, where remaining attackers detonated suicide vests.
France declared a three-month state of emergency, suspending public demonstrations and granting police expanded search and arrest powers. On 15 November, France launched its largest airstrike of Opération Chammal against IS targets. Lead operative Abdelhamid Abaaoud was killed in a police raid on 18 November. The attacks intensified European debates on border security, migration, and counter-terrorism policy.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Abdelhamid Abaaoud.
Side B
1 belligerent
François Hollande.