One dead and injured: Interior Minister speaks of a terrorist act near Paris

In the Paris region, a man opened fire from a car on the street, killing at least one person. There were also at least four injured, the French national police said. The 39-year-old suspect was arrested. The French anti-terrorism prosecutor's office said it had opened an investigation.

Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez spoke of a “terrorist act”. The investigation is still ongoing, he told journalists. "But it is clearly a terrorist crime." The motives still have to be finally clarified. Citing the responsible public prosecutor, Nuñez stated that the background could be racist. There was initially no further information.

According to the minister, the suspect fired with an automatic weapon. The four injured people were seriously injured. According to French media, among them is a twelve-year-old child. The suspect fired shots from the car in three different locations. The incident occurred in the Yvelines department, which is in the western part of the greater Paris region.

First shots were fired in the community of Trappes, then the man reportedly drove on to the neighboring small community of La Verrière. The mayor of Trappes, Ali Rabeh, told broadcaster BFMTV that the man apparently fired indiscriminately and wanted to cause a "bloodbath." The fatality is said to be of “African origin” and an injured person whose life is in danger is also of “Maghreb origin”.

The French anti-terrorism prosecutor's office said it had opened an investigation into "murder in connection with a terrorist organization." The crime was also committed “due to actual or perceived membership of an alleged race, ethnic group, nation or particular religion.”

The investigation also concerns the offense of "possession of a category A weapon", which includes in particular automatic weapons that fire volleys, and "participation in a terrorist criminal organization with the aim of preparing crimes against people".

Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu wrote on Platform X that security and judicial authorities were in full operation. These are “very serious incidents”. All resources of the security forces and the judiciary have been fully mobilized.

In view of protests and unrest, the security situation in France is currently tense. At the weekend there were massive riots on the sidelines of demonstrations against high costs of living and grievances in the education system. In response, nighttime curfews were imposed in several major cities.