'Islamic State not responsible for Strasbourg bloodshed'

Christophe Castaner, interior minister

France's interior minister on Friday dismissed a claim by the Islamic State group that it was responsible for a shooting spree at a Christmas market in Strasbourg after the gunman Cherif Chekatt was shot dead by police.

Interior minister Christophe Castaner dismissed as "completely opportunistic" a Twitter post by the IS propaganda wing which claimed Chekatt, a career criminal with 27 convictions in four countries, was one of its "soldiers." "We're dealing with a man who was consumed by evil," Castaner said. Questions remain over how Chekatt was able to evade the tight security perimeter around the market.

Catch up on all the latest Crime, National, International and Hatke news here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates

This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever