Saturday Jun 21, 2025
NEWSLETTER
www.israelhayom.com
  • Home
  • Iran War
  • News
    • Gaza War
    • US Election Coverage
    • Middle East
    • Cyber & Internet
    • Business & Finance
  • Opinions
  • Jewish World
    • Archaeology
    • Antisemitism
  • Lifestyle
    • Food
    • Travel
    • Fashion
    • Culture
  • Magazine
    • Feature
    • Analysis
    • Explainer
  • In Memoriam
www.israelhayom.com
  • Home
  • Iran War
  • News
    • Gaza War
    • US Election Coverage
    • Middle East
    • Cyber & Internet
    • Business & Finance
  • Opinions
  • Jewish World
    • Archaeology
    • Antisemitism
  • Lifestyle
    • Food
    • Travel
    • Fashion
    • Culture
  • Magazine
    • Feature
    • Analysis
    • Explainer
  • In Memoriam
www.israelhayom.com
Home News World News

'Recent convert to Islam' stabs 4 to death at Paris police headquarters

French interior minister says of attacker "there were no warning signs." Mayor Anne Hidalgo: "Paris weeps for its own this afternoon after this terrifying attack."

by  News Agencies and Israel Hayom Staff
Published on  10-04-2019 08:22
Last modified: 10-04-2019 12:25
'Recent convert to Islam' stabs 4 to death at Paris police headquartersAP/Kamil Zihnioglu

Police officers stand guard outside the Paris police headquarters, Thursday | Photo: AP/Kamil Zihnioglu

Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

A 45-year-old technology administrator at the police headquarters in central Paris went on a knife rampage inside the building on Thursday, killing three police officers and an administrative worker before he was shot dead by an officer, French officials said.

French broadcaster BFM TV said the attacker had converted to Islam 18 months ago.

Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter

Officials did not say anything about the motive for the attack and said they were still trying to discover if there was a terrorism link.

The man launched the attack in his office then moved to other parts of the large 19th-century building across the street from the Notre Dame Cathedral.

An officer stopped the attack when he shot the assailant in the compound's courtyard, said a police official. The official was not authorized to talk publicly about the case and requested anonymity.

Emery Siamandi, who works at police headquarters, said he was in the stairwell leading to the chief's office when he heard gunshots.

"I told myself, this isn't right," Siamandi said. "Moments later, I saw three policewomen crying. I couldn't help them in any way, and their colleagues were crying, too, so I figured it must be serious."

He said he saw one officer on his knees in tears.

The area around the police headquarters was sealed off and a metro station was shut for security reasons as the attack unfolded.

The dead were three men and a woman, according to Paris prosecutor Remy Heitz. Another person was wounded and is undergoing surgery.

Heitz said police were searching the attacker's home, and that anti-terrorist investigators were evaluating what had happened, for any terrorist links. The attacker's wife had been brought into police custody but not charged, the Paris prosecutor's office said.

"It's the worst scenario possible, an internal attack with colleagues working together," said Philippe Capon of the UNSA police union.

Capon cautioned against jumping to conclusions on the motive and said, "Nothing can be ruled out, including a personal issue."

French media reported the employee carried out the attack with a ceramic knife.

President Emmanuel Macron stopped by police headquarters to show solidarity with officers and department employees, his office said.

The neighborhood where the police compound is located, a busy tourist destination, was locked down, the Cite metro stop was closed and the bridge between Notre Dame and the headquarters building was blocked off.

"Paris weeps for its own this afternoon after this terrifying attack in the police headquarters. The toll is heavy, several officers lost their lives," Mayor Anne Hidalgo tweeted.

Speaking outside the police headquarters, French Interior Minister Christophe Castaner said the attacker was known to his colleagues and had worked for some time in the IT department.

"He had never presented any behavioral issues, he had never presented the slightest cause for alarm before going on his deadly rampage today," Castaner said. "There were no warning signs."

A police official and member of the collective "Police up in Anger," which lobbies for better conditions for officers, was quoted by France Info radio as saying the assailant had experienced issues with his supervisor.

"I know there were tensions between him and his direct supervisor," Christophe Crepin told France Info. "I do not think this is a terrorist act."

Jean-Marc Bailleul, a police union leader, described the incident as criminal rather than an act of terror. "It was a moment of madness," Bailleul told BFM TV.

In the past four years, the French capital has been rocked by violent attacks resulting in mass casualties.

Coordinated bombings and shootings by Islamist terrorists in November 2015, at the Bataclan theater and other locations around Paris, killed 130 people in the deadliest attacks in France since World War II.

In a three-day killing spree in January 2015, Islamist gunmen killed reporters and illustrators at satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo, police officers, and shoppers at a Jewish supermarket.

Tags: FranceParisstabbing attackTerrorism

Related Posts

How does pizza predict when America goes to war?AP, Reuters

How does pizza predict when America goes to war?

by ILH Staff

The Pentagon's "pizza index" has tracked late-night delivery spikes to predict military action since the 1980s; "Bottom line for journalists...

'Massacre performance' in Belgium sparks outrageNone

'Massacre performance' in Belgium sparks outrage

by Nissan Shtrauchler

Belgium’s parliament is set to debate on a controversial performance staged in central Brussels that simulated the murder of Jewish...

Finance minister hampers procurement efforts, affecting critical munitionsIDF Spokesperson's Unit

Pentagon cuts F-35 order in half for 2025 budget

by Erez Linn

The Defense Department’s decision to halve the order has not been accompanied by an official explanation, and neither Lockheed Martin...

Menu

Analysis 

Archaeology

Blogpost

Business & Finance

Culture

Exclusive

Explainer

Environment

 

Features

Health

In Brief

Jewish World

Judea and Samaria

Lifestyle

Cyber & Internet

Sports

 

Diplomacy 

Iran & The Gulf

Gaza Strip

Politics

Shopping

Terms of use

Privacy Policy

Submissions

Contact Us

About Us

The first issue of Israel Hayom appeared on July 30, 2007. Israel Hayom was founded on the belief that the Israeli public deserves better, more balanced and more accurate journalism. Journalism that speaks, not shouts. Journalism of a different kind. And free of charge.

All rights reserved to Israel Hayom

Hosted by sPD.co.il

  • Home
  • Iran War
  • News
    • Gaza War
    • US Election Coverage
    • Middle East
    • Cyber & Internet
    • Business & Finance
    • Sports
  • Opinions
  • Jewish World
    • Archaeology
    • Antisemitism
  • Lifestyle
    • Food
    • Travel
    • Fashion
    • Culture
  • Magazine
    • Feature
    • Analysis
    • Explainer
    • Environment & Wildlife
    • Health & Wellness
  • In Memoriam
  • Subscribe to Newsletter
  • Submit your opinion
  • Terms and conditions

All rights reserved to Israel Hayom

Hosted by sPD.co.il

Newsletter

[contact-form-7 id=”508379″ html_id=”isrh_form_Newsletter_en” title=”newsletter_subscribe”]

  • Home
  • Iran War
  • News
    • Gaza War
    • US Election Coverage
    • Middle East
    • Cyber & Internet
    • Business & Finance
    • Sports
  • Opinions
  • Jewish World
    • Archaeology
    • Antisemitism
  • Lifestyle
    • Food
    • Travel
    • Fashion
    • Culture
  • Magazine
    • Feature
    • Analysis
    • Explainer
    • Environment & Wildlife
    • Health & Wellness
  • In Memoriam
  • Subscribe to Newsletter
  • Submit your opinion
  • Terms and conditions

All rights reserved to Israel Hayom

Hosted by sPD.co.il