By: Brandon Choghri
A hammer-wielding assailant wounded a police officer before being shot by French police outside Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris today.
The man, allegedly an Algerian student, attacked a police officer with a hammer, but was also armed with knives. He was wounded in the chest when a different officer opened fire, and is now in hospital.
French Interior Minister Gerard Collomb said the man yelled “this is for Syria” during the attack, and noted that the officer’s condition is not serious.
Notre-Dame is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Paris, and typically draws long lines. The Cathedral was immediately placed under lock down, and hundreds of tourists were held inside until the attacker was apprehended.
We’re trapped in Notre-Dame de Paris, something is happening outside. Police sirens can be heard. They are not letting anyone in or out
— Matthew CurrieHolmes (@mch2k) June 6, 2017
Many inside the Cathedral took to Twitter to receive updates on the situation, and said police asked them to put their hands in the air during the incident.
Locked inside #notre dame cathedral in #paris while police investigate attack outside against a policeman. All calm pic.twitter.com/Z4B8wUzPTV
— Nancy Soderberg (@nancysoderberg) June 6, 2017
Paris prosecutors have opened a terrorism investigation.
France has been under a state of emergency since November 2015, when terrorist attacks killed 130 people in Paris.