ISIS warns of 'lone wolf' drone attacks on Eiffel Tower in latest terror threat on Paris Olympics
10 June 2024, 15:59 | Updated: 10 June 2024, 16:01
Islamic State has called on 'lone wolves' to carry out drone strikes on Paris during the 2024 Olympics.
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The terror group made an apparent bomb threat on the French capital, releasing a mock-up image of a drone being flown at the Eifell Tower on a website linked to the militant Islamist group.
"Lone wolves’ Olympics have begun with the Will of Allah," the post read.
A lone wolf attack is a mass murder committed by an individual without support or direction from an organisation or leader.
Calling on these terror-motivated killings has been a frequent tactic from ISIS. It has also claimed responsibility for these sorts of attacks, even when there appears no obvious involvement.
ISIS called for the attacks through the al-Ru’ud (al-Raud) Project - which Europol has denoted as a video streaming platform for Islamic State releases.
The website attributes the post to the Al-Adiyat Media Foundation, another known branch of ISIS which has previously called for attacks and mass murders around the world.
ISIS and other extremist groups have also handed out “attack manuals” to help their followers adapt drones to carry explosive devices, The National reported.
The instructions provide details on commercially available drones that can be easily purchased. The manuals, which have been circulated among extremists before, have increased ahead of major global sporting events taking place this year.
It comes as France ramps up security ahead of the Olympics which is set to kick off next month.
Paris and 17 other cities will host the games, with additional police and emergency services on standby to act under any threats.
An 18-year-old was recently arrested on suspicion of planning to attack a stadium in Saint-Étienne during the Olympics football tournament.
The teenager, only identified as Rokhman B, is a Russian national from the majority-Muslim Chechen community.
His family moved to France in 2023, officials said, and had been claiming asylum. Authorities believe he was working with Islamic State in Khorasan, an Afghanistan-based offshoot of the terror group.
