By late afternoon, the siege appeared to be over, and no more hostages were being held, said Col.
United Nations officials said that at least 19 people had been killed, as well as two or three attackers, with bodies found lying in the basement and on the hotel floors.
Source: New York Times
Netizen comment
Chris Arizona
I realize all Muslims are not terrorists, but why does it appear all terrorists are Muslims? No Christians, Hindus, Buddhists or Jews - just Muslims.
Peace loving civilized Muslim friends - you have a real problem among your fellow worshippers.
Susan New York
By all means....blame Hillary for the MESS that George Bush and his minions created. Do you conservatives have the capacity to lay the well deserved blame on anyone in your party???????
Socrates Verona, N.J.
The inbreeding of widespread poverty and Islamic religion by Middle Eastern authoritarianism governments has produced religious plutonium.
Take a bow Saudi Arabia - you bankrolled the global Wahhabism/Salifism movement with oil money that has mutated into a worldwide 'cult of death' in the name 'Allah'.
The religion of peace has become a poverty stricken Middle Eastern 'cult of death'.
WillT26 Durham, NC
A lot of these terrorists are not poor. Stop excusing the inexcusable.
There is no justification for this kind of violence. None.
There terrorists are following a facet of their religion, culture and society. They are killing because their interpretation of their religion calls for killing.
Will you ever hold them accountable for their own actions? Or is everything the fault of 'the West'? How paternalistic of you.
Charlie in NY New York, NY
When the targets were Israelis or Jews in Europe, there was a collective yawn and a rush to justify the terrorist attacks. Then came attacks in, among others, the U.S., UK, Spain, India and France earlier this year with the murders at Charlie Hebdo and (rarely mentioned these days) more Jews at a kosher deli. Excuses - or as Secretary Kerry put it so foolishly a "rationale" - were still being trotted out. With the recent tragic attacks it is beginning to dawn on the West that these terror groups, from Hamas to ISIS, have nothing to discuss and are not interested in compromise. They want to defeat the infidel West, murder as many as they can and impose Islam.
The uncomfortable fact for a post-religious a West should now be evident: this is all about a particular strain of Islam, seemingly born of its Wahhabi variant. Military force will have limited effect. The West must also stop making excuses for all terrorist attacks. There is no justification for attacking civilians, ever, no matter the grievance (whether real or imagined), no matter the imbalance in power and all the rest.
Ultimately, this is a problem internal to Islam and the terror philosophy can only be countered by theological arguments from respected Islamic theologians. That after all these years of finding religious justification in Islamic texts for attacks on Jews, the task will be monumental and perhaps impossible. That they don't seem to have any stomach to try is deeply troubling.
Joe Minnesota
Hmmm the terrorist justify their actions by citing the Quran and they release only their captives who can recite verses from the Quran. But - let's not dare call these terrorist "Islamic Terrorists."
Robert M. Stanton Pittsburgh
We may be reaching the unfortunate point where the radical Muslim movement must be eradicated. Innocent people may be killed in the process but more will be saved.
Disgusted New Jersey
Another terrorist attack. Sometimes I wonder if all of the terrorist groups coordinate these events. Many of the terrorists come from countries which have no future; no running water; poor food distributions systems. No wonder many of the terrorist are young people. They have nothing to live for.
Sivaram Pochiraju Hyderabad, India
Very sad. Muslims are responsible for the present worst scenario in the world. It's rather unfortunate that religion comes first for them wherever they live except Islamic part of the world and as such everything comes last. That's where all the problems lie.
Any temporary war can be won but Muslims must introspect and find the solution for their own good and for the world peace. Unless and until it's done the worst scenario will continue and no area in the world will be practically safe. We will have no choice but to live with it since no amount of security, infrastructure, money, power and technology can take care of us.
surgres New York
There is a very clear theme: radical Islam is using violence to kill people. Their goal is to eradicate Western values and impose their version of Islamic Law. This attack appears to involve remnants of Al-Qaeda, the Paris attacks involved ISIS, but the underlying motivation is the same: Radical Islam.
Islam is a beautiful religion, but we must have the courage to call out the people who kill in the name of their religion. When will our leaders have the courage to do that? How many innocent lives will be sacrificed before they have the courage to stand up to evil?
Kevin Chicago
Time for the world leaders to wake up. We are at war whether you want to admit it or not. It's not your choice. Extremists have chosen for you. Respond accordingly or continue to watch your people get mowed down like sheep.
Guy in KC Missouri
Nonsense. The idea that it is only poverty and "marginalization" that causes people to choose to become terrorists is a fantasy of the left, and a pernicious and repugnant form of blaming the victims of terror for terrorism. There are billions of people in dire poverty throughout the world but only a few of them become terrorists. If you can't see that religion, in this case Islam, is the unifying force for these terrorists, then you are willfully blind.
Peter Cambridge, MA
So you attack Hillary Clinton for voting for the Iraq war, and taking out Gaddafi with no after-plan, but you say nothing about Bush taking out Saddam Hussein with no after-plan. Which has had the most disastrous effects, do you think?
And your grandchildren will certainly not agree with you that climate change is delusional or just a minor problem.
rjd nyc
I'm still waiting for the so called moderate Muslim leaders to speak up and condemn all of this growing violence. Thus far, it's been a long wait and very little said. As each event unfolds and we witness the slaughter of innocent people it is going to become more and more difficult for our political leaders to keep a lid on this. The world is losing its patience and I fear that a tremendous backlash is coming soon.
uofcenglish wilmette
This is a war we have not been taking seriously. This doesn't mean we jump in with ground forces, but we need to truly understand our enemy and stop underestimating our enemy. They have a short game and a long game. They are on the offensive and we the defensive. If we move to a stronger offensive position, we had better have a long game which is far better than our last one. We cannot eradicate them unless we plan to become an occupying force. The idea that we can have political partners in this region any time soon has proven highly destructive. Given much of what we are learning, wiping them out, as some are calling for, may not be a possible or a realistic outcome. The more power vacuums you create and the more martyrs you create, the enemy may grow stronger. This is a complex problem many of us have only begun to think about as a threat to our way of life.
Victor Edwards Holland, Mich.
A news commentator just said that it is unknown who has done this, as no one has claimed responsibility. Yeah, sure.
Let me guess: it was a roving band of those pesky fundamental Baptists, right?
Sharon5101 Rockaway Beach Ny
Ok -- who did we manage to offend this time???
WillT26 Durham, NC
We are told that these terrorists are just misguided and that if we just let enough of them into the country they will like us.
These guys know exactly what they are doing. And our leaders are fools.
Andrew NY
Religion is the cause, not the undertone - any Muslim in Paris has a standard of living better, more freedom, than almost any Muslim in the Muslim world.
ring0 Somewhere ..Over the Rainbow
I disagree. What about the Chinese and Indian people? Millions are impoverished.
No name Boston
A reform movement within Islam is needed that actively embraces religious diversity while repealing the religious restrictions that inhibit integration of its followers with the rest of the world. A rather simplistic statement and seemingly bigoted statement on my part, but looking at our own history, many religious groups that immigrated to the West did engage in similar reforms and enjoyed peace and prosperity. If reforms are not embraced, then one does have to wonder about Islam being truly a religion of peace when its religious rigidity prevents its followers from actively participating in mainstream society.
Observer Ithaca, NY
Actually, many ISIS members are residents or citizens of Western countries, and they have grown up among relative privilege. They've been treated like the princes of their families, and they resent the fact that the rest of the world doesn't think they're entitled to all the money, women, and 'respect' they would like. In a way, they're similar to the Eliot Rogers of our society - entitled misogynists who resent the world in general for not respecting their greatness.
Peter New York, NY
Then why are so many of them well-educated like the 9/11 hijackers, or from their own societies' upper classes like Osama bin Laden?
wingate san francisco
Really, the last time I looked the leaders of this movement they were rich Saudis.
Peter Cambridge, MA
I'm still mulling over the fact that the Paris attacks warranted a full-width banner headline in the NYT, and this story gets a one-column treatment. I guess I sort of understand it, but I'm not sure that I like the implications. More people in the US have been to Paris than have been to Bamako. But if it happens in Africa, is it less important?
John F. Reading, PA
I wonder how this religious test will make the American politicians calling for a religious test feel. The long arc of human progress is feeling a gravitational pull in the wrong direction.
rocketship new york city
Again, it is the Muslims. When will people learn what they are about? It is good that the US Government is not allowing a full throttle immigration from Syria at this time. It is normal and logical.
ZHR NYC
How could this "peaceful religion" have so many unpeaceful adherents?
Michael Holmes Charleston
The 9/11 terrorists were Saudis . . . and were by all accounts decidedly middle class and well educated. Osama bin Laden's family was quite wealthy. Most of the ISIS recruits picked up in the U.S. by law enforcement do not come from poor backgrounds. The "fabric of these groups" is not poverty . The fabric of these groups IS religion . . . a perverted form of religion, but religion nonetheless.
Marcko New York City
I'm so glad the Neocons brought democracy to Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya. It seems to be spreading to the rest of the region.
MAC BK
ummm...terrorists in Paris were neither homeless or poor.
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