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Paris Police Shoot and Arrest Man After Stabbings at Train Station Paris Police Shoot and Arrest Man After Stabbings at Train Station
(about 8 hours later)
The police in Paris shot and arrested a man who attacked and injured six people with a homemade bladed weapon early on Wednesday at the Gare du Nord, one of the capital’s busiest train stations, the French authorities said. A man went on a violent, unprovoked stabbing spree on Wednesday at the Gare du Nord in Paris, injuring six people and causing brief panic at one of Europe’s busiest train stations until he was shot and arrested by the police.
The motive for the assault was not immediately clear, but none of the injuries were expected to be life-threatening and the French authorities were not treating the episode as a terrorist attack. Investigators were not immediately able to identity the suspect, who attacked his victims with a metal hook, and the motive for his assault was not clear, the French authorities said. But none of the injuries were expected to be life-threatening, and the episode was not currently being treating as a terrorist attack.
Gérald Darmanin, the French interior minister, said that at 6:42 a.m., an “extremely threatening individual” had stabbed several bystanders in front of the station before continuing inside, in what appeared to be a random attack during the commuter rush. Gérald Darmanin, the French interior minister, told reporters at the station that at 6:42 a.m., an “extremely threatening individual” had stabbed several bystanders in front of the station before continuing inside, during the busy commuter rush.
Border police who were stationed at the Gare du Nord, as well as off-duty officers who were armed and present at the scene, responded within a minute, Mr. Darmanin said. Two of the police officers fired three shots at the suspect and subdued him, he said. The assault was sudden, random and extremely violent, according to Laure Beccuau, the Paris prosecutor, who said in a statement on Wednesday evening that the suspect had stabbed his first victim at least 20 times with a metal hook that had been sharpened and wrapped with string, “allowing a better grip.”
The suspect was arrested and hospitalized with serious injuries, according to the Paris prosecutor’s office, which said it had opened a criminal investigation for attempted murder. Border police officers who were stationed at the Gare du Nord, as well as off-duty officers who were armed and present, responded within a minute, Mr. Darmanin said. Two of the police officers fired three shots at the suspect and subdued him, he said.
The attack injured six people, including one of the border police officers. Five were lightly wounded, and the sixth sustained more serious injuries, Mr. Darmanin said. The suspect was arrested and hospitalized with serious injuries and has not yet been questioned by police, according to Ms. Beccuau, who has opened a criminal investigation for attempted murder.
Gare du Nord, in the 10th arrondissement of Paris, is one of the largest transit hubs in the French capital, with service to northern France and beyond, along with a Eurostar terminal for travelers heading to Britain. The attack injured six people: two men and three women ages 36 to 53, and one of the border police officers. Five of the victims were slightly wounded, and the sixth sustained more serious injuries, but his life was not in danger, Ms. Beccuau said.
“Without the extremely fast police response there would certainly have been deaths,” Mr. Darmanin told reporters at the station, which the police had partially cordoned off but was otherwise functioning normally. Gare du Nord, in the 10th arrondissement of Paris, is one of the largest transit hubs in the French capital, with service to northern France and beyond, along with a Eurostar terminal for travelers heading to Britain. It is used by over 220 million people every year, according to official statistics.
Mr. Darmanin said the suspect did not have any papers on him during his arrest and that investigators were working to identify him. Mr. Darmanin said it was unclear exactly what kind of bladed weapon the assailant had used but that it appeared to be “something that he might have crafted himself,” rather than a standard knife. “Without the extremely fast police response there would certainly have been deaths,” Mr. Darmanin said at the station, which the police partly cordoned off for much of Wednesday but was otherwise functioning normally.
The Twitter account of TER Hauts-de-France, a regional branch of France’s national railway serving northern France, said that the assailant “was brought under control, emergency services intervened and the person was taken away.” One witness, identified only as Lilie, told RTL radio that she was near the assailant when he started to attack two people, causing immediate panic. “Everyone started to run all over the place and to shout,” she said. “Others tried to subdue the man, but he seemed very aggressive and attacked anyone who tried to stop him.”
The police established a security perimeter and train traffic was disrupted, “but the station is still being used normally,” the account added.
One witness, identified only as Lilie, told RTL radio that she was near the assailant when he started to assault two people, causing immediate panic. “Everyone started to run all over the place and to shout,” she said. “Others tried to subdue the man but he seemed very aggressive and attacked anyone who tried to stop him.”
“We were shaken,” she said of her experience. “When you think about it, it could have been us, because were just two meters away.”“We were shaken,” she said of her experience. “When you think about it, it could have been us, because were just two meters away.”
The attack came nearly three weeks after a gunman killed three people and wounded three others at a Kurdish community center, a hair salon and a restaurant in central Paris in what French officials said was a racially motivated attack against foreigners. Ms. Beccuau said that investigators had not been able to fully identify the suspect, who was shot twice in the chest and once in his right arm and was still being operated on as of Wednesday night. She said that his fingerprints had matched several aliases recorded in police databases, but she did not provide any details about a criminal record.
The suspect in that case, a 69-year-old man who told the police he had a “pathological” hatred of foreigners, was indicted on charges of murder and attempted murder with a racist motive. He remains in custody. He appeared to be in his 20s and to have been born either in Libya or in Algeria, Ms. Beccuau said, but she did not confirm or comment on French news reports, citing anonymous sources, that said he had been ordered to leave the country last summer.
The French government has come under pressure in recent months over the issue of foreigners who commit crimes in France even though they are under deportation orders. In October, the killing of a 12-year-old schoolgirl fueled outrage, especially on the right, after the main suspect was identified as an Algerian woman who had been ordered to leave France.
France was struck by large-scale Islamist terrorist attacks in 2015 and 2016, followed by a string of smaller but still deadly shootings and stabbings in subsequent years, often carried out by lone assailants.France was struck by large-scale Islamist terrorist attacks in 2015 and 2016, followed by a string of smaller but still deadly shootings and stabbings in subsequent years, often carried out by lone assailants.
While terrorist attacks have receded from the headlines in France, the authorities say the threat is still high and that the police and intelligence services regularly foil plots. Mr. Darmanin said last month that the authorities had thwarted 39 Islamist attacks and nine far-right attacks since 2017. While terrorist attacks have receded from the headlines in France, the country is still on high alert and the authorities say that the police and intelligence services regularly foil plots. Mr. Darmanin said last month that the authorities had thwarted 39 Islamist attacks and nine far-right attacks since 2017.
The attack at the Gare du Nord came nearly three weeks after a gunman killed three people and wounded three others at a Kurdish community center, a hair salon and a restaurant in central Paris, in what French officials said was a racially motivated attack against foreigners.
The suspect in that case, a 69-year-old man who told the police he had a “pathological” hatred of foreigners, was indicted on charges of murder and attempted murder with a racist motive. He remains in custody.