Paris: Seven people left wounded in knife attack, assailant arrested

In a shocking incident, seven people were left wounded in Paris as an armed man with a knife and iron bar attacked people at a cinema on either side of the Canal de l’Ourcq on Sunday, according to police. The suspect has been arrested and is believed to be an Afghan national, reported News Agency AFP.

"Nothing at this stage shows signs of a terrorist nature in these assaults," the sources told AFP, adding that the attacker had targeted “strangers in the street".

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Among the seven wounded, two are British nationals. Four of the attacked are in critical condition, the police said.

The horrendous incident took place on Sunday night (2100 GMT) on the banks of a canal in the north-east of Paris.

A security guard at the cinema said he saw the assailant being chased by two men as he had already assaulted people before, as per Channel News Asia.

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"He had an iron bar in his hand which he threw at the men chasing him, then he took out a knife," he told Channel News Asia.

A police probe has been launched for attempt to murder, as per a judicial source, News Agency AFP reported.

France has witnessed a sharp rise in knife attacks in recent months, however, terrorism was ruled out in maximum cases.

Earlier on August, a man was shot dead after he stabbed his mother and sister to death after critically injuring another person in a town near Paris.

(With inputs from agencies)