What happened?
French police arrested a Paris man Sunday, Sept., 9, night after he injured seven people in a knife attack.
The man reportedly used a 15-inch kitchen knife and metal bar to attack strangers in the street, two of which were British tourists, according to ABC News.
The incident occurred around 11 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 9 when the man began attacking people outside a cinema.
Several people nearby playing pétanque, a French bowling game, began throwing metal balls at the attacker in an attempt to stop him, according to ABC News. At least five balls hit the man in the head, and over 20 people started chasing him. They disarmed and held down the attacker until police arrived.
The Latest
Of the seven injured, four are in critical condition, according to the News Corp Austrailia Network. One of the British tourists was stabbed in the head, and the other was “cut in the chest.”
Paris’s Mayor, Anne Hidalgo, later thanked the nearby civilians on Twitter for their attempts to stop the attacker.
What’s Next
One victim’s injuries are life-threatening, and authorities have opened an attempted murder investigation, USA Today reported. Police do not suspect the attack was linked to terrorism at this point, and have not reported any other motive, according to USA Today.
In Context
“France has seen violence carried out by individual attackers in recent months,” according to Business Insider.
Over the past few years, several terrorist attacks happened in Paris. However, there have been no major attacks since 2015.
