Police are warning travelers to stay away from Notre Dame and the Île de la Cité in Paris after a man attacked a police officer with a hammer.
France 24 reports that police shot and wounded the suspect. The officer, who was patrolling in front of the cathedral, was lightly wounded. The suspect has been taken to the hospital.
According to the BBC, the man shouted “this is for Syria” during the attack, and prosecutors have opened a terrorism investigation.
Interior Minister Gerard Collomb told Reuters that the attacker was carrying the identification card of an Algerian student, and that preliminary information indicated that he had acted alone.
France has been under a state of emergency since the November 2015 terrorist attacks at the Bataclan concert venue in Paris. French President Emmanuel Macron extended the state of emergency from July through November 1 following the bombing of an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester.
Earlier this year, a gunman opened fire on a police van on Paris’ Champs Elysees with an automatic weapon, killing a French police officer and injuring two others. The gunman was then shot dead by security forces while attempting to flee.
Keep visiting www.travelagentcentral.com for further updates to this developing story.
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