French officer died from throat injuries

A French police officer who swapped places with a civilian during Friday’s terror attack in southern France died from multiple knife wounds to his throat, an autopsy revealed. Morocco-born Radouane Lakdim, 25, killed four people after he hijacked a car in the town of Carcassonne and then held people hostage at a supermarket in Trèbes. In addition to slashing the officer’s throat with a knife, Lakdim also shot Lt. Col. Arnaud Beltrame in the head with a 7.65 mm pistol. Authorities found a 9 mm handgun on Beltrame and suspect the terrorist attacked him after he discovered the weapon. Beltrame began negotiating with Lakdim and took the place of a female hostage inside the Super-U supermarket not long after the standoff began. On Monday, French prosecutors said Lakdim’s 18-year-old girlfriend “showed all signs of radicalization.” She shouted “Allahu akbar” during her arrest, and just a few hours before the attack she posted online a verse from the Quran “indicating that infidels were promised to hell.” She has denied knowing about Lakdim’s plans.