Lethal effect of loners puts all cities at risk

The latest terrorist atrocity in France, where 84 people were killed on Thursday night during Bastille Day celebrations in the southern city of Nice, is the seventh deadly attack to be carried out against the country since the Charlie Hebdo killings of January 7, 2015, bringing the total death toll to 400. 

As France grieves, the people of Ireland, who have experienced more than their share of terrorism, join with the rest of the civilized world in mourning the victims.

People have been left confused and angry by the slaughter. Understandably, they find it hard to grasp that so many were either killed or injured, many of them critically, including an Irishman, as they gathered on the Promenade des Anglais, the most popular venue in Nice for strolling, cycling, jogging and roller-blading, swimming, or just relaxing with a glass of wine on the two-mile long stretch overlooking the sea, a social lynchpin where visitors to the ancient maritime city have been gathering for centuries.