The World - News from July 7, 1986

Bombs exploded outside the Paris offices of two companies with ties to South Africa, causing damage but no injuries. In a statement to a French news agency, Direct Action, an extreme left-wing French group, claimed responsibility and denounced July 4 celebrations in New York of the 100th anniversary of the Statue of Liberty. President Reagan and French President Francois Mitterrand took part in the celebrations. The first bomb went off at a small computer center of Thomson Electronics, blowing a small crater next to a wall. A second blew up in a car parked in front of the headquarters of Air Liquide, damaging the building and seven vehicles parked nearby. Police said the security offices at both companies received anonymous calls just before the blasts.