A man has been arrested after three people were stabbed at a busy Paris train station.
Reports said the alleged attacker was first tackled by a passenger and a security guard at Gare de Lyon just before 8am on Saturday, before police arrived on the scene. Police said early indications suggest the attack was not terrorism-related.
The three victims were in Hall 3 on the lower floor of the station, but their injuries were not life-threatening. Two people were taken to the hospital, one with serious injuries.
According to French media, the arrested man, who was said to be in possession of a knife and hammer, was originally from Mali and provided police with an Italian driver’s license at the time of his arrest.
Le Figaro newspaper reported that the 32-year-old man tried to set his backpack on fire before police arrived. The newspaper cited a police source as saying that he appeared to have “mental problems”.
A police source told the newspaper: “The profile is a mix of homeless and mentally ill people.”
Minister of the Interior Gerald Darmanin I wrote to X: “This morning at Gare de Lyon, a person injured three people with a knife before being arrested. One person was seriously injured. Two others suffered even more serious injuries. They… He was treated by emergency services. We would like to thank those who apprehended the perpetrator of this unacceptable behavior.”
Police have launched a formal investigation into the attack.
There were several knife attacks in the French capital last year. In December, a 26-year-old French man stabbed a German tourist to death near the Eiffel Tower. Darmanin said at the time that there had been a “failure” in the suspect’s psychiatric treatment.
In January last year, six people were injured in a knife attack at Paris Gare du Nord. The assailant was shot three times by police.
Gare de Lyon is one of the six main train stations in Paris. It operates domestic trains to south-east France and international trains to Switzerland, Italy and Spain. It is also a hub for suburban rail services and the Paris Metro.
