‘It’s For Syria’: French Police Shoot Hammer-Wielding Attacker Who Assaulted Officer Outside Notre Dame
French police have shot a man outside of Notre Dame after he allegedly tried to attack an officer with a hammer.
People around the Parisian cathedral were told to evacuate, and the area is currently being occupied by emergency services. Details about the incident are not yet clear, though BBC reports that the attacker was incapacitated after being shot in the chest. It is currently unknown if the attacker is still alive.
A report from The Guardian states that the French prosecutor’s counter-terrorism office has launched an investigation, and the area will remain under watch until the authorities determine that the threat has passed.
The assault comes days after London was attacked by three terrorists who killed seven people and injured dozens more.
UPDATE – 11:35 a.m. EST: Paris police have offered this announcement about the situation.
NEW: Paris police say Notre Dame situation under control; 1 officer injured; suspect neutralized, taken to hospital. https://t.co/hS67w3lGHw pic.twitter.com/6tB30mNJ5N
— ABC News (@ABC) June 6, 2017
UPDATE – 11:50 a.m. EST: CNN spoke to eyewitness Kyle Riches, who described the scene of panic that settled in after the gunshots rang out. Riches described how he saw the attacker bleeding out after being shot, and he also talked about the steps that officers took to secure the area.
UPDATE – 12:15 p.m. EST: French interior minister Gerard Collomb announced that the suspect yelled that he attacked the officer “for Syria.”
PARIS (AP) – French interior minister says Notre Dame attacker cried 'it's for Syria'
— Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) June 6, 2017
UPDATE – 12:42 a.m. EST: CNN tweeted out a video that Riches took at the scene:
Video shows Paris police surrounding man after he attacked an officer with a hammer outside the Notre-Dame Cathedral https://t.co/LA7rriYEDM pic.twitter.com/BoolIWy09u
— CNN (@CNN) June 6, 2017
This story is developing, and we shall update accordingly.
Watch above, via MSNBC.
[Image via shutterstock]
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