A knifeman has been “neutralised” at the Gare du Nord Eurostar railway hub in Paris after wounding six people in a morning rush-hour attack.
Police shot the man repeatedly after the attack, which took place at 6.45am on Wednesday.
“He lunged at people indiscriminately before police intervened,” said an investigating source.
France’s Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin told reporters the man attacked travellers with what looked like a home-made weapon inside one of Europe’s busiest stations. Police had earlier said the man had used a knife or blade.
He said the attacker, who has been taken to hospital with life-threatening injuries, had said nothing during the attack and had no identity papers on him. One of the six injured is a police officer, Darmanin said.
He indicated that the man was wounded himself and then arrested thanks to the “effective and courageous reaction” of the police.
There was no initial indication as to the motive of the attacker.
The off-duty police officer was on his way home wearing civilian clothes when he reportedly neutralised the knifeman by shooting him in the arm and chest, a source told Europe1.
BFMTV reported the first victim has a superficial wound to the collarbone, while the others suffered minor injuries.
Il semblerait qu'il y ait eu une attaque au couteau à Gare du Nord pic.twitter.com/DuqBrEfYWN
— Lionel MARGAS (@LionelMgs) January 11, 2023
French rail company SNCF reported: “The emergency services intervened and the person evacuated. A security perimeter has been established but the station continues to operate normally”.
A female witness to the attack, who asked not to be identified, said: “I was with my friends at the Gare du Nord this morning, heading off on holiday, and we were just going into the entrance when we heard someone shout.
“People were lying on the ground, and others getting on trains as quickly as possible. Someone had a knife out and was attacking people.
“I looked after the first victim who had been wounded. I got the impression that the knifeman was just attacking anyone close to him.
“As people were being looked after, I heard shots being fired – the forces of law and order were reacting to the attacker.
“The whole thing was incredibly shocking. I was so close to the attack, it could have involved anyone.”
The stabbing follows a series of bomb, gun and knife attacks carried out by Islamic State and al-Qaeda operatives in France, dating back to early 2015
The deadliest single terrorist attack ever in the country came in November 2015 when 130 people were killed in Paris.
Suicide bombers pledging allegiance to ISIS targeted the Stade de France, cafes, restaurants and the Bataclan music venue, where 90 died.
Earlier in the year, two Paris-born gunmen linked to Al-Qaeda broke into the offices of the Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine, leaving 17 people dead inside and three outside.
In July 2016, 86 people were called and more than 400 injured when a 19 tonne truck was deliberately driven into crowds on the seafront promenade at Nice, which is just 20 miles from Cannes.
The terrorist turned out to be a Tunisian immigrant who was shot dead by police.
During the same month, two Isis terrorists murdered an 86-year-old Catholic priest during a church service in Normandy.
And in October 2020, three people were stabbed to death by a Tunisian immigrant in the Notre Dame basilica in Nice.
There have also been frequent knife attacks on the forces of law and order, leading to the deaths of serving police.
