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| French police shoot man holding knife in Metz | |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Prosecutors say man ‘known for radicalisation’ taken to hospital and placed in custody | |
| French police have shot and injured a man holding a knife in Metz, two days after a fatal stabbing in Paris. | |
| Christian Mercuri, the public prosecutor in the city in north-east France, said the man involved in the incident on Sunday, who was known to police both “for his radicalisation and for a personality disorder”, shouted “Allahu Akbar” (God is greatest) before being shot. | Christian Mercuri, the public prosecutor in the city in north-east France, said the man involved in the incident on Sunday, who was known to police both “for his radicalisation and for a personality disorder”, shouted “Allahu Akbar” (God is greatest) before being shot. |
| A police source said the suspect, who was born in 1989, threatened officers when they arrived at the scene, and they fired shots to overpower him. | A police source said the suspect, who was born in 1989, threatened officers when they arrived at the scene, and they fired shots to overpower him. |
| “He is injured but his life is not in danger,” the source said, adding that no one else was hurt. | “He is injured but his life is not in danger,” the source said, adding that no one else was hurt. |
| Mercuri said the man was taken to hospital, where he was placed in custody and put under investigation for the attempted murder of police officers. | Mercuri said the man was taken to hospital, where he was placed in custody and put under investigation for the attempted murder of police officers. |
| Witnesses said a 22-year-old man who killed a man and injured two women at a park in Villejuif, a suburb of Paris, also shouted “Allahu Akbar”. | Witnesses said a 22-year-old man who killed a man and injured two women at a park in Villejuif, a suburb of Paris, also shouted “Allahu Akbar”. |
| The attacker, who had converted to Islam, was shot dead by police. He also had psychiatric problems. Police are treating the incident as a terrorist attack. | The attacker, who had converted to Islam, was shot dead by police. He also had psychiatric problems. Police are treating the incident as a terrorist attack. |
| Mercuri said he was in discussions with terrorism prosecutors about whether they should take charge of the investigation in Metz. | Mercuri said he was in discussions with terrorism prosecutors about whether they should take charge of the investigation in Metz. |
| The office of the anti-terrorism prosecutor said that “although the [Villejuif] perpetrator had a proven history of serious psychiatric problems”, the investigation had shown “a distinct radicalisation … as well as preparations for his attack.” | The office of the anti-terrorism prosecutor said that “although the [Villejuif] perpetrator had a proven history of serious psychiatric problems”, the investigation had shown “a distinct radicalisation … as well as preparations for his attack.” |
| A bag belonging to the man, identified by police only as Nathan C, was found at the scene. It contained works by ultraconservative Salafist writers and a letter that read like a last will and testament, investigators said. | A bag belonging to the man, identified by police only as Nathan C, was found at the scene. It contained works by ultraconservative Salafist writers and a letter that read like a last will and testament, investigators said. |
| Laure Beccuau, the public prosecutor in the town of Créteil, who had been handling the investigation before it was taken over by the anti-terrorism bureau, said the assailant spared the life of the first person he met in the park after the man, a Muslim, recited a prayer in Arabic. | Laure Beccuau, the public prosecutor in the town of Créteil, who had been handling the investigation before it was taken over by the anti-terrorism bureau, said the assailant spared the life of the first person he met in the park after the man, a Muslim, recited a prayer in Arabic. |
| He then fatally stabbed a 56-year-old man in the heart and injured his wife, before stabbing a 30-year-old jogger in the back. The two women were discharged from hospital on Saturday. | |
| On Tuesday, France will mark the fifth anniversary of the killing of 12 people at the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in Paris by two brothers pledging allegiance to Al-Qaida. | On Tuesday, France will mark the fifth anniversary of the killing of 12 people at the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in Paris by two brothers pledging allegiance to Al-Qaida. |
| France remains on high alert after a string of terrorist attacks killed more than 250 people in the past five years. | France remains on high alert after a string of terrorist attacks killed more than 250 people in the past five years. |