French police shot a man dead near Paris after he went on a rampage with a knife in a park. The assailant killed one person and wounded two more.
The attack happened in the town of Villejuif , about 8 km south of central Paris. The deputy head of the French Ministry of Interior said police personnel were able to quickly neutralise the assailant.
”At this time, I would like to salute the quick response of Paris police personnel, especially the personnel of the anti-crime brigade of this area, who intervened very quickly. This allowed the assailant to be neutralised immediately, preventing him from pursuing murderous rampage. This is an extremely courageous act, showing great responsiveness”- says Laurent Nunez, Deputy Minister of Interior of France.
The two injured victims are being treated in nearby hospitals. Laure Beccuau, the prosecutor whose office is handling the case, said witnesses were being interviewed to establish what happened. She declined to disclose details about the attacker.
”There were three victims – one dead, and two other people are still being examined in different hospitals in the Val-de-Marne department. The perpetrator was also gunned down. What we know at the moment is that in his murderous rampage, the perpetrator attempted to attack other victims, who were able to evade him”- says Laure Beccau, prosecutor for the City of Creteil.
In the past four years, the French capital has been rocked by major attacks resulting in mass casualties. In October last year, four people were stabbed to death at the Paris police headquarters by an IT specialist working for the police. Additionally, coordinated bombings and shootings by Islamist militants in November 2015 at the Bataclan theater and other locations around Paris killed 130 people in the deadliest attacks in France since World War II.