French police arrest eight more suspects in the Bastille Day truck attack

French authorities have made eight new arrests in connection with the Bastille Day truck attack in Nice that left 86 people dead, according to the Paris prosecutor’s office.

The suspects detained on Monday were French and Tunisian, and had links to the attacker, Mohamed Lahouaiej-Bouhlel, the office said.

On 14 July Lahouaiej-Bouhlel ploughed a 19-tonne truck down the Promenade des Anglais and into a crowd that had gathered to watch a firework display.

All eight men were arrested in the south-eastern Alpes-Maritimes region, which includes Nice.

According to the Guardian, at least five people already face preliminary terrorism charges in the attack, and are accused of helping Lahouaiej-Bouhlel obtain a pistol and providing other support.

While Daesh claimed responsibility for the attack, French authorities reportedly said that Lahouaiej-Bouhle was inspired by the extremist group’s propaganda, but they had no evidence that Daesh orchestrated the attack.