French soldiers patrol after four people have been wounded in a knife attack near the former offices of satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo, Friday Sept. 25, 2020 in Paris. A police official said officers are "actively hunting" for the perpetrators and have cordoned off the area including the former Charlie Hebdo offices after a suspect package was noticed nearby. Islamic extremists attacked the offices in 2015, killing 12 people.
At least two people were wounded in a knife attack Friday near the former offices of the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo in Paris, police said Friday. A suspect has been arrested.
A Paris police official said that while authorities initially thought two attackers were involved, they now believe it was only one person, who was detained near the Bastille plaza in eastern Paris, a city police official said. The official said police are still searching the area while they question the arrested suspect.
Police initially announced that four people were wounded in the attack, but the official told The Associated Press that there are in fact only two confirmed wounded. Police could not explain the discrepancies.
It is unclear what motivated the attack Friday or whether it had any link to Charlie Hebdo, which moved offices after they were attacked by Islamic extremists in 2015, who killed 12 people inside.
AP reporters at the scene of Friday’s police operation saw officers flooding into the neighborhood, near the Richard Lenoir subway station. Police cordoned off the area including the former Charlie Hebdo offices after a suspect package was noticed nearby, according the police official.
Police did not release the identities of the attacker or the wounded, who are in “absolutely urgent” condition, the official said. The official was not authorized to be publicly named.
Prime Minister Jean Castex cut short a visit to a suburb north of Paris to head to the Interior Ministry to follow developments.
The trial in the Charlie Hebdo attacks is currently underway across town. Murmurs broke at the terrorism trial of 14 people, including 3 fugitives, accused of helping the attackers in the January 2015 killings, as the news filtered through. The widows of the Charlie Hebdo attackers are scheduled to testify Friday afternoon.
