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Gunman opens fire on Amsterdam-Paris train, wounding three people Gunman opens fire on Amsterdam-Paris train, wounding three people
(34 minutes later)
A gunman shot and wounded three people on a train travelling between Amsterdam and Paris before the assailant was overpowered by passengers, a spokesman for French state rail company SNCF said. A gunman has shot and wounded three people on a high-speed train travelling from Amsterdam to Paris before being overpowered by passengers and arrested by police.
The incident happened near Arras in northern France shortly after 4pm and the gunman was arrested when the Thalys train stopped at the town’s station, an SNCF spokesman said. The shooting happened at around 6pm as the Thalys train was travelling near Arras in northern France, the French state rail company SNCF said.
“The situation is under control, the travellers are safe. The train stopped and the emergency services are on site,” the Thalys official Twitter account tweeted in response to several online requests for comment. French media said the gunman had shot a Kalashnikov on board the train, and was also armed with knives.
The French interior minister, Bernard Cazeneuve, was heading to Arras in the wake of the incident, his ministry said. The local paper La Voix du Nord reported that two US marines on the train had overpowered the man. The paper reported that the marines had intervened when the man was loading heavy ammunition in a toilet on the train. Both marines were reported to have been injured, one by gunfire, the other by a knife.
The train stopped at Arras station where the gunman was arrested and is currently being questioned by police.
The motives behind the attack were not immediately known, but French anti-terrorist police took over the investigation.
The French interior minister, Bernard Cazeneuve, was heading to Arras in the wake of the incident and was expected to make a statement.
The French president, François Hollande, said: “All is being done to shed light on this drama.”
One passenger told BFMTV that the incident happened towards the back of the train, the train braked several times, was diverted to Arras station and passengers were evacuated.
Two of the victims were seriously injured and at least one suffered gunshot wounds, an SNCF spokesman said.