Shooting near Paris leaves one dead, girl among wounded

A man opened fire from a vehicle on passers-by in three different locations in the towns of Trappes and La Verrière, near Paris. The attack lasted nearly a quarter of an hour. One person was killed and four others were wounded, including a 12-year-old girl whose condition is very serious.

The national anti-terrorism prosecutor's office has opened an investigation for murder linked to a terrorist enterprise, with the aggravating circumstance that the act is said to have been committed because of the victim's actual or presumed membership of a particular race, ethnic group, nationality or religion. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said the weapon used appeared to be military-grade or automatic, and described the episode as a terrorist crime with a possible racist motive.

Five officers from the anti-crime brigade stopped the man in the street shortly after the shooting began, likely cutting short his attack. The mayor of Trappes, Ali Rabeh, said the man appeared to have fired at random at passers-by in several locations, including a playground, calling it "probably one of the first attempted massacres motivated by Islamophobia and racism." According to Rabeh, the person killed was of African origin, while one of the seriously wounded is of North African origin.

The arrested suspect was not known to intelligence services and was known to police only for drink-driving, theft and drug possession. During a search of his apartment in Plaisir, security forces found a kind of trap rigged with gas canisters; the entire building was evacuated as a precaution while bomb disposal experts intervened.

Authorities' response

Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu described the events as "extremely serious" and pledged the full mobilisation of security forces. In the evening, President Emmanuel Macron travelled to the scene to meet the mayor, rescue workers and local residents, expressing solidarity with the community. The Élysée Palace openly described it as a racist terrorist attack.

The shooting comes at a time of heightened tension in France, on the eve of fresh protests against the cost of living planned for Saturday, with a significantly larger police deployment following last week's unrest. The presidential election is due in six months, with Marine Le Pen currently leading in the polls.