Reactions to the November 2015 Paris attacks

On the night of 13 November 2015, Paris suffered a series of terror attacks. In reaction to those events, many individuals, governments, and other organisations around the world expressed their solidarity with France and with the victims. Many world leaders issued statements, mostly strongly condemning the attacks and vowing to stand by and support France. Public vigils took place in many international cities, and a number of world landmarks were illuminated in the colours of the French flag. Members of the public expressed their solidarity through social media by sharing images, notably the "Peace for Paris" symbol, designed by the French graphic designer Jean Jullien, and through the slogans, "Pray for Paris" and "Je suis Paris" (itself a reference to the phrase "Je suis Charlie", which was shared widely in the aftermath of the "Charlie Hebdo" shootings in Paris on 7 January 2015).
Government reactions.
European Union.
European Council.
The attacks prompted European officials—particularly German officials—to re-evaluate their stance on EU policy toward migrants, especially in light of the ongoing European migrant crisis. Many German officials believed a higher level of scrutiny was needed, and criticised the position of German Chancellor Angela Merkel, while the German Vice-Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel defended her stance, saying that a lot of migrants were fleeing terrorism.
French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said that he would be meeting with EU ministers on 20 November in Brussels to discuss how to deal with terrorism across the European Union.
Meeting reports indicated that Schengen area border controls have been tightened for EU citizens entering or leaving, with passport checks and systematic screening against biometric databases. This is based on a temporary measure; changing the rules on a long term basis could take months.
Poland's European affairs minister designate Konrad Szymański declared that, in the wake of the attacks, he saw no possibility of enacting the recent EU refugee relocation scheme. The new Prime Minister of Poland, Beata Szydlo, while acknowledging that Poland is bound by international treaties, said she would ask the EU to change its decision on refugee quotas. Szydlo later stated that Poland would honour the commitment made by the previous government to accommodate 9,000 refugees.
Hungary's prime minister, Viktor Orbán, rejected the concept of mandatory resettlement quotas.
Andrej Babiš, Czech deputy prime minister, proposed closing the Schengen border. Czech Prime Minister, Bohuslav Sobotka, said the attacks were a wake-up call for Europe. Sobotka also criticized president Miloš Zeman for supporting anti-Islamic groups and spreading hatred, according to Reuters, whose report adds that the Sobotka government has been deporting migrants.
Slovakia's prime minister, Robert Fico, said he was proven right about the links between Middle East migrants and security.
European Commission and Parliament.
The attack interrupted final negotiations over the Budget of the European Union, with participants taking breaks to watch TV news of the events. Commission Vice-President Kristalina Georgieva said that the events encouraged shocked negotiators to end the talks quickly, with a final agreement five days before 18 November deadline. Commission Vice-President Federica Mogherini and EU defence ministers backed France's request for help in military missions after they invoked Article 42.7 of the Treaty of the European Union for the first time since its creation.
As a result, the United Kingdom has already stated its intention to help France directly in operations in Syria, while some countries intend to aid France by taking over activities in Africa, namely in Mali and the Central African Republic. Germany will send up to 650 troops to Mali and 50 military trainers to Kurdish forces in Iraq. Spain, Lithuania and Slovenia announced similar actions.
Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission, rejected calls to rethink the European Union's policy on migration. Dismissing suggestions that open borders led to the attacks, Juncker said he believed that the attacks should be met with a stronger display of liberal values, including internal open borders. The Czech Prime Minister expressed disappointment over Juncker's response.
Canada.
Canada maintained its commitment to accept 25,000 Syrian refugees, and in early November, set a challenging deadline, the end of 2015. By 24 November however, it was clear that no more than 10,000 could be accommodated by year end; the rest would arrive by March 2016. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that the accompanying security measures would protect Canadians. By 20 November, financial plans were being made for the proposed funding for six years, estimated at $1.1 billion. Discussions as to how and where refugees would be resettled were also under way. However, an expert, Gerard Van Kessel, retired director-general of the refugees branch at Citizenship and Immigration Canada, warned on 23 November 2015 that a five or six weeks is not adequate to complete security checks and resettle 25,000 people.
All of the provinces had agreed to accept refugees and all but one provided specifics as to the number they would be able to support. On 22 November 2015, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation reported that (according to unnamed sources) Canada will limit the acceptance of Syrian refugees to only women, children and families, screening out unaccompanied men. Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale assured Canadians that a robust screening process would be used overall, but admitted that some checks would be done once the refugees were already in Canada.
 However, a criminologist, Barry Cartwright of Simon Fraser University is convinced that it's impossible to do thorough security checks ″in a region where there are basically no recognized police departments.″
United States.
The US House of Representatives passed the American SAFE Act of 2015, which makes it more difficult for Syrian and Iraqi refugees to enter the United States. The bill failed to pass the Senate. At least 31 state governors said that they opposed accepting Syrian refugees into their states, although the decision to accept refugees belongs to the federal government; numerous mayors of major US cities have said they would welcome more refugees.
The United Nations asked Congress and governors to continue accepting Syrian refugees who had been vetted by security measures as an example to other countries.
Other nations' responses.
Many world leaders and governments expressed their condemnation of the attacks and their condolences to the victims. These included:
World landmarks illuminated in the colours of the French flag.
Following the attacks, multiple landmarks around the world were lit in the colours of the French flag.
Popular reactions.
Vigils and memorials.
French foreign exchange students gathered in Union Square in New York City where they lit candles and sang "La Marseillaise". Vigils took place in Sydney, Montreal, London, New York City, Glasgow, and Manila among others.
On 14 November, German pianist Davide Martello towed his grand piano by bike to the Bataclan theatre, where a reported 80 people had died in the attack. There, he played John Lennon's "Imagine" to a crowd gathered outside in tribute to the victims. Martello is known for travelling around conflict zones to play the piano and previously performed at the sites of the Charlie Hebdo attacks.
At the 800th annual Lord Mayor's Show in London, a two-minute silence was held with flags at half-mast while fireworks were cancelled. At the City Hall of Athens, the flags of France, Greece, and the European Union were at half-mast to mourn for the victims. The Christmas decorations of Athens have been left unlit.
The European Union declared 13 November a European Day of Mourning and member states held a minute's silence on 16 November at 12 p.m. Central European Time to show a sign of respect and solidarity to those who lost their lives in the attacks. In the UK, all public places and many government offices and officials were to have both UK and French flags flown at half mast as a sign of respect.
On 17 November, England played France at Wembley Stadium, London with fans of both teams uniting to sing the French national anthem, "La Marseillaise", before a minute's silence. On the first weekend of English Premier League matches since the attack, "La Marseillaise" was played before every game. French football club Paris Saint-Germain was granted permission to wear the message 'Je suis Paris' on the team's jersey for two matches.
A number of residents of the Syrian city of Damascus, caught in fierce fighting between the Syrian government, ISIS and Western air strikes wrote an open letter stating, "We extend our hands to all the people that love peace and freedom, most of all the French people."
Social media.
In the hours after the attack, some Parisians used social media, in particular the Twitter hashtag #PorteOuverte (French for "#OpenDoor"), to offer overnight shelter to strangers stranded by the attacks. The hashtag trended worldwide. A modified version of the International Peace Symbol by London-based French graphic designer Jean Jullien, in which the centre fork was modified to resemble the Eiffel Tower, was also widely spread. The symbol was widely shared with the hashtags #PeaceForParis, #PrayForParis, #PrayForFrance and #JeSuisParis. Facebook reintroduced its safety check-in system so users in Paris could notify friends and family that they were safe. Facebook also encouraged users to temporarily overlay a transparent image of the French flag to "support France and the people of Paris".
In the wake of the attack, phrases such as "Je Suis Paris" and "We are all Parisians" appeared on news broadcasts and social media websites worldwide to show solidarity with the victims. This was similar to the reactions after the January 2015 "Charlie Hebdo" shooting with the phrase "Je Suis Charlie" and reflects the historic phrases "ich bin ein Berliner" in the 1961 Berlin crisis and the phrase "Tonight, we are all Americans" spoken on air by France 2 reporter Nicole Bacharan after the September 11 attacks. The French embassies and institutions used the hashtag #NousSommesUnis (French "We are united").
The slogan #PrayforParis has been object to critical discussion due to its religious and imperative character. The Dalai Lama said "Humans created this problem and humans must solve it". The French Artist Joann Sfar suggested to use the hashtag #ParisIsAboutLife instead.
Some ISIL supporters used the hashtag #باريس_تشتعل (Paris burns, Paris is burning or Paris is on fire), the same hashtag that appeared in the January 2015 attacks on "Charlie Hebdo"s office and a Paris grocery store. In response, social media users urged saturation with #Parisburns, re-purposing the hashtag as support for the victims and Paris. Muslims also rebuked the attacks by using the hashtag #NotInMyName and #MuslimsAreNotTerrorist, the former of which had been utilized by Muslims in the past to condemn ISIS actions.
Following the attack, a Facebook campaign was created with the goal of getting Eagles of Death Metal's cover of the Duran Duran song "Save a Prayer" to number one on the UK Singles Chart. The song ultimately peaked at number 53 for the chart dated the week after the attack.
Google attached a black ribbon to the bottom of their page "in memory of the victims of the Paris attacks". Skype and other websites have allowed users to make free calls to France to allow users to connect and communicate with loved ones or relatives/friends to ensure their safety.
High-profile political cartoonist Hadi Heidari was arrested in Iran after he depicted the Eiffel Tower in tearful solidarity with the people of Paris – an image that had been widely shared on social media and reproduced by western news organizations.
Other reactions.
NBC's "Saturday Night Live" opted not to open the show with a comedic cold open as it usually does; instead, cast member Cecily Strong addressed the City of Paris in English on behalf of New York City, which was followed by a French translation of her comments. After saying the show's opening line, "SNL" returned to its usual format. The show has only removed its usual cold open after two other occasions—the September 11 attacks in 2001 and the Sandy Hook shooting in 2012.
In the days following the attacks, the French news and entertainment show "Le Petit Journal" sent its reporters on to the streets of Paris to document the public's reactions. Their reporter Martin Weill recorded an interview with a six-year-old boy named Brandon, who, when asked if he understood why the attackers had done what they had done, responded: "Yes, because they're really, really mean. Bad guys are not very nice. And we have to be really careful because we have to change houses." Videos of the interview went viral in both the French- and English-speaking world.
The hacktivist group Anonymous declared "war" on ISIL in its largest operation to date, and by the second day claimed to have taken down 3,824 pro-ISIL Twitter accounts and doxxed multiple recruiters.
The National Football League has implemented metal detectors and increased security inside and outside its stadiums for the games that played during week 10 of the 2015 season as spectators were discouraged from bringing non-plastic clear bags into the venues. All teams that played held a moment of silence to honor the victims of the attacks.
The WWE has changed its security guidelines and held a moment of Silence prior to the 16 November episode of "Monday Night Raw" displaying the French Flag and the Eiffel Tower in the form of Peace for Paris.
Negative reactions.
At a football match against Greece, some Turkish supporters booed during a minute of silence in commemoration of the attacks, and a section reportedly shouted "Allahu akhbar," an incident echoing what had previously happened during a minute of silence for the victims of the October Ankara bombings, in which minority Alevis and Kurds made up the majority of the Ankara bombing victims. During a moment of silence in a match between Moldova and Azerbaijan, Azerbaijani soccer fans booed.
During a Euro 2016 qualifier match between Ireland and Bosnia and Herzegovina in Dublin, a minutes silence was held prior to kick off. Bosnian fans were reported to be chanting loudly during that period.
Responses from Muslim groups.
Various Muslim religious leaders and organisations from around the world condemned the attacks. Some took to social media to say that the attacks went against the teachings of Islam. Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar and Egypt have been among the Arab states leading condemnations of the simultaneous attacks in Paris, in addition to Morocco, Bahrain, Iraq, Turkey, and Iran. Al-Azhar university in Cairo, the Muslim world's top theological institution of learning and oldest university, strongly condemned the attack, saying, "The time has come for the world to unite to confront this monster... Such acts are contrary to all religious, humanitarian and civilized principles." Mirza Masroor Ahmad, the head of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, issued a press release from London condemning the attack by expressing his heartfelt sympathies and condolences to the French nation, and said that these attacks are against the teachings of the Quran. Les Fédérations Musulmanes, a French Muslim federation, strongly condemned the attacks in Paris denouncing it as "abject barbarism." The Luxembourg Shoura, a federation of Muslim leaders in Luxembourg condemned the attacks in a statement released on the Tuesday following the attacks saying "We are outraged and express loud and clear our deep disgust and our unequivocal condemnation of these criminal acts committed against civilians done at random."
The Muslim Council of Britain described the attacks as "horrific and abhorrent" and participated in one of the Trafalgar Square vigils. The Council added that "There is nothing Islamic about such people and their actions are evil, and outside the boundaries set by our faith ...there is no justification for such carnage whatsoever." The Association of British Muslims said that "The Muslim faith condemns such acts of violence" and "The attacks in Paris were not aimed just at France or Paris, they are attacks against the values and freedoms we cherish and live by in Europe, they were aimed at all of us."
The Syrian branch of Al-Qaeda, al-Nusra Front, praised the attacks, saying that even though they view ISIL as "dogs of hellfire", they applaud when "infidels" get attacked by ISIL.
In a press release by the Australian National Imams Council, the Grand Mufti of Australia Ibrahim Abu Mohamed made some controversial remarks that: "These recent incidents highlight the fact that current strategies to deal with the threat of terrorism are not working. It is therefore imperative that all causative factors such as racism, Islamophobia, curtailing freedoms through securitisation, duplicitous foreign policies and military intervention must be comprehensively addressed". He received criticism from politicians and the press for not directly condemning the Paris attacks. Which led to a further statement: "We wish to emphasise it is incorrect to imply that the reference to causative factors provides justification for these acts of terrorism." and "Dr. Ibrahim Abu Mohamed have consistently and unequivocally condemned all forms of terrorist violence."
Political reactions.
The attacks called attention to existing controversy over mass surveillance and calls for prohibition of strong encryption or otherwise hard-to-monitor communications. Shortly after the reports it was reported that a PlayStation 4 unit had been found in the home of one of the suspects, which correlated with Belgian home affairs minister Jan Jambon's statement three days before the attack that "The most difficult communication between these terrorists is via PlayStation 4". Though not encrypted, PlayStation chats allow millions of customers to speak with people they would not otherwise know, complicating the traffic analysis that can expose patterns even in encrypted communications when the participants in a conversation are identified. Comments after the attack by American CIA Director John Brennan blamed disclosures by Edward Snowden and availability of encryption for aiding terrorist networks, though this idea was opposed in a "New York Times" editorial as "a new and disgraceful low".
At the second political debate for Democratic candidates for the U.S. presidency, when Bernie Sanders was asked whether after the attacks he still believed that the greatest threat to national security was climate change, he explained that climate change was related to rising terrorism, because it caused competition over resources.