Ohio, Mahoning Valley react to Paris bombing aftermath

As people begin to realize the coordination and dimension of the Paris terrorist attack, Gov. John Kasich is joining other governors in calling for President Barack Obama to stop the resettlement of Syrian refugees in the United States.

Mickael Sopel, the men’s and women’s tennis coach at Youngstown State University, is a native of a town about 30 minutes from Paris. His mother, stepfather and other relatives remain there.

“My mom and stepdad still work in Paris,” said Sopel, who’s been employed at YSU for four years. “My stepdad walks down the street where one of the restaurants ... attacks [was].”

Sopel, who’s has been in the United States for eight years, learned about the attacks from a text from his sister in Utah, telling him that his family was unhurt.

“It was a shock with all of the different locations at the same time,” he said.

One of the coordinated attacks wasn’t far from the offices of Charlie Hebdo, the satirical newspaper, where last January, two men forced their way in and shot and killed 11 people and injured 11 others.

“I was shocked about how aggressive and how horrible it was – the dimension of the attack,” Sopel said.

The terrorists didn’t target any government or people with a specific belief, he said. The victims were just regular people, Sopel said.

He was in France this past summer, returning Sept. 12.

In the short term, Sopel believes the attacks will affect the French people’s way of life.

He called the attacks France’s 9/11.

“I can’t imagine being there and going to a restaurant and not thinking about it,” he said. “I would imagine people are going to be scared about it for a little while.”

In the long-term, though, he believes things will return to normal.

For the complete story, read Tuesday's Vindicator and Vindy.com