At least one person died and two others were injured in a knife and hammer attack in Paris on Saturday (December 2, 2023).
The attack occurred on Quai de Grenelle, a venue located close to the iconic Eiffel Tower.
A 26-year-old French national known to security services has been arrested and anti-terrorism prosecutors have opened an investigation, reported BBC.
The deceased person was identified as a German national.
France’s Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin was quoted as saying by CNN that two others sustained non-life-threatening injuries.
One of the police officers responding to the scene used a taser to neutralize the attacker,Darmanin said.
The suspect’s life is not at risk, he added.
“After his arrest, he said he could no longer bear to see Muslims dying in both Afghanistan and Palestine,” Darmanin said.
The minister was quoted as saying by the American news channel that the suspect was known to intelligence services for having “serious psychiatric disorders.”
The minister said he had been told by police that the attacker had reportedly shouted “Allahu Akbar” during the assault.
French President Emmanuel Macron described the incident as a ‘terror act’.
“I send all my condolences to the family and loved ones of the German national who died this evening during the terrorist attack in Paris and think with emotion of the people currently injured and in care,” he wrote on X.
“The national anti-terrorism prosecutor’s office now seized will be responsible for shedding light on this matter so that justice can be done in the name of the French people,” he said.
