No reports of Indians affected in France 'terror' attack: MEA

The Ministry of External Affairs on Friday said there were no reports of any Indians affected in the terror attack in Nice, France. The Indian embassy in Paris has opened a helpline number: +33-1-40507070.

"Our ambassador in Paris is in touch with the Indian community in Nice. So far no report of any Indians affected. Our embassy in Paris has opened helpline +33-1-40507070," tweeted Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Vikas Swarup.

At least 80 people were killed on Thursday night when a large truck mowed through a crowd celebrating Bastille Day in Nice. French President Francois Hollande said the truck attack was of a "terrorist character".

"We condemn the attack. We are monitoring the situation. There are no reports of Indians affected so far," Swarup told a news channel.

"About 1,500 Indians live in Nice. It is also a very popular vacation spot, so many Indians during the summers may have travelled to France and some of them may have been in Nice," he said.

"This is why our ambassador has cautioned that it is too early to have a definitive judgment on whether any Indians have been affected or not," swarup added.

Asked by the news channel if India has a consulate in Nice, Swarup said: "We do not have a consulate in Nice, but our ambassador and Indian embassy officials are in touch with the local authorities there."

"We have to depend on the support and cooperation of the local authorities. French authority is capable of dealing with the situation. They have dealt with terror attacks in the past," he told the news channel.

Swarup said: "We have full faith and confidence in the ability of French security agencies to deal with the situation and depending on what they put out to us about the situation, about the possibilities of more terror attacks, based on all those inputs, we will take a considered view whether we need to issue an advisory or not."

In a message, he said: "We stand in solidarity with all our brothers and sisters in France and I think unitedly we'll be able to face the menace."

--IANS

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