Six people injured in knife attack in unprovoked attack Paris’ Busy at the Gare du Nord train station on Wednesday morning before he was shot by police, the French interior minister said, praising police’s quick intervention that helped prevent any deaths.
Gérald Darmanin, along with Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo, told reporters at the scene that the knifeman attacked several people, including a police officer, with a “sharp weapon” at around 6:43 a.m. He added that the unnamed assailant was currently “between life and death” in a hospital. French media reported that he had been shot in the chest.
Darmanin thanked the police “for their effective and courageous response.”
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“Without extremely rapid intervention, there will certainly be deaths,” he said, detailing how the knifeman was neutralized within a minute of attacking his first victim.
“At 6:42, the first acts were described. At 6:43 p.m., the police used their administrative weapon after his violence,” he said.
According to officials, the injured included several passengers and a border police officer. Darmanin said the assailant had stabbed the officer in the back, but the bulletproof vest saved him. According to French media, five of the victims suffered minor injuries, while one was seriously wounded in the shoulder blade and taken to emergency treatment.
Video from the Gare du Nord, one of the French capital’s busiest commuter stations, showed an eerie calm as dozens of police surrounded the Eurostar terminal entrance in areas cordoned off by the public.
No specific motive, including terrorism, has currently been suggested by the authorities. France has been horrified by a spate of deadly attacks since 2015.
According to national railway company SNCF, the commotion severely disrupted train services during the morning rush hour at Europe’s busiest rail artery station.
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