Two women were critically injured after a man armed with kitchen knives attacked passersby on a street in northwestern Paris on Monday.
Three women were hurt in the attack, which took place at around 11.30 am local time. The suspect was restrained at the scene and arrested by an off-duty police officer.
Suspect detained after Paris knife attack
The attacker was carrying two kitchen knives when he targeted people on the street, according to French media reports.
All three victims received medical treatment. Two were reported to be in critical condition.
French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said the suspect had provided “only a self-reported identity” after being taken into custody.
The man was also making “incoherent statements”, the minister said.
Video captures suspect’s religious statement
Several videos purportedly showing the attack and the suspect’s detention later appeared on social media.
In one clip, the man could be heard making a religious statement while lying on the ground as he was restrained.
“It is Allah who commanded me,” he was heard saying.
Nunez, however, urged “great caution regarding the motives behind this extremely violent act”.
France’s National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor’s Office, known as PNAT, was monitoring developments in the case, according to media reports.
Paris stabbing follows deadly Berlin attack
The violence in Paris came after a deadly vehicle-ramming and stabbing attack in Berlin over the weekend.
A van was driven into a crowd near Berlin’s Tiergarten park on Saturday evening. The driver then attacked passersby with a weapon believed to be a machete.
One woman was killed and 29 people were injured. The attack occurred near the site of Berlin’s Christopher Street Day pride parade.
The suspect was located in Berlin’s Spandau district at around 6 p.m. on Sunday.
Police said he ran towards officers carrying a stabbing weapon. The officers opened fire, killing him.
German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said earlier on Sunday that authorities suspected the Berlin violence was an “Islamist terrorist attack”.