One person died and two others were injured after a man attacked tourists in central Paris near the Eiffel Tower, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said on Saturday. Police quickly arrested the 26-year-old man, a French national, using a Taser stun gun, Darmanin told reporters.
The suspect had been sentenced to four years in prison in 2016 for planning another attack and was on the French security services’ watch list, and was also known for having psychiatric disorders, the interior minister added.
The attack took place around 1900 GMT when the man attacked a tourist couple with a knife on the Quai de Grenelle, a few feet away from the Eiffel Tower, mortally wounding a German national. He was then chased by police and attacked two other people with a hammer before being arrested.
The suspect had shouted out “Allahu Akbar” (God is greatest) and told police he was upset because “so many Muslims are dying in Afghanistan and in Palestine” and was also upset about the Gaza situation, Darmanin said.
The anti-terrorism prosecutor’s office said it was in charge of the investigation.
Saturday night’s incident in central Paris occurred less than eight months before the French capital hosts the Olympic Games and could raise questions about security at the global sporting event.
Paris plans an unprecedented opening ceremony on the Seine river that may draw as many as 600,000 spectators.
