Armed man in Paris train station attack killed by police

A knife-wielding man attacked Paris police officers patrolling Gare du Nord railway station in the French capital early on Monday morning.

The incident took place at about 7am (06:00 GMT) on Monday at the terminus for trains from London.

Gare du Nord in Paris is one of Europe’s biggest railway stations and home to international train services connecting to the United Kingdom and Belgium.

Responding to the attack, police officers used their firearms and shot the attacker dead.

“The person who attacked them died on the spot,” Transport Minister Jean-Baptiste Djebbari said, adding that two police officers received minor injuries.

“The police used their firearms, thus eliminating all danger, both for themselves and for travelers,” Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin wrote in a tweet.

“It was an individual known to the police as someone who wandered around in the station,” Djebbari added. “He appears to have attacked the police with a knife, forcing them to use their weapon.”

Djebarri said the Paris railway station incident had caused major traffic disruptions on Monday morning. He added that the incident was not thought to be terrorism related.

A security perimeter has been set up at the departure level of mainline trains. Several trains were delayed as a result, including international Eurostar trains.

An investigation has been opened for attempted homicide, the Paris prosecutor’s office.

A France Television journalist at the railway station at the time posted a video of the incident on social media, in which two gunshots can be heard.