A shooting occurred on the streets of the Paris suburbs on the 23rd, where a gunman opened fire from a vehicle, leaving one person dead and five others injured, including a 12-year-old girl who was shot eight times. Because several of the victims have African immigrant backgrounds, French President Emmanuel Macron has characterized the incident as a "racist terrorist attack." French prosecutors are investigating whether the case involves racial hatred and Islamophobia, and are pursuing the case as a murder involving terrorist acts.
According to Agence France-Presse (AFP), Ali Rabeh, the mayor of Trappes, stated that the gunman drove through the working-class town of Trappes, southwest of Paris, and the neighboring town of La Verrière, "firing randomly with the intent to commit a massacre."
Most of the victims have foreign backgrounds. Prosecutors are investigating whether the gunman's actions were motivated by the victims' "real or perceived race, ethnicity, nationality, or religion."
French President Emmanuel Macron, who later visited Trappes, stated: "What happened here today is a racist terrorist attack. This is a turning point because it is the first time someone has attempted to kill fellow citizens and our children because of their skin color or the religion they are perceived to practice, thereby committing a terrorist act. We must not yield to the ideologies taking root within the Republic that could be used to justify such behavior."
Nicolas Dainville, the mayor of La Verrière, stated that the 12-year-old girl who was shot eight times is in "very serious" condition but is currently stable.
Police subsequently arrested the suspected gunman in the nearby town of Coignières. According to a source familiar with the case, the suspect is a 39-year-old man who was found in possession of a submachine gun and several tear gas grenades. He reportedly fired in bursts from his vehicle around 10:30 a.m. that day.
Anti-terrorism prosecutors noted that the suspect had also set traps in his apartment, placing three gas cylinders and wires connected to a "timer," appearing to prepare for an explosion. Prosecutors stated that authorities have opened an investigation into "murder involving terrorist acts."
Trappes Mayor Ali Rabeh stated that the suspect was driving a car and firing intermittently, and that the deceased victim was of "African descent." He added that another victim is in "critical condition and is of North African descent."
With the number of injured rising from the previously reported four to five, Rabeh believes the incident "is objectively a racist attack and likely carries an Islamophobic motive." He also called for national unity to face this crisis.
La Verrière Mayor Nicolas Dainville stated that two of the victims in his town are of African descent. They were working as cleaners at a school when the gunman opened fire on them on the morning of the 23rd.
French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez later visited the two affected towns of Trappes and La Verrière, describing the shooting as "clearly a terrorist crime." French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu also posted on social media that the case is "very serious" and that "all resources of the security forces and judicial authorities have been fully deployed to respond."
This shooting occurred at a time when French society is in a state of high tension. Last weekend, large-scale protests involving hundreds of thousands of people erupted across France due to the rising cost of living, followed by riots around the protests, becoming one of the most serious street violence incidents in recent years. More protests are expected this weekend. For the past week, night curfews have been implemented in cities across France, and police will increase deployments to deal with potential escalations in street clashes.
