January 11, 2023, Paris: A knife attacker wounded six people in an attack on Paris’ busy Gare du Nord train station Wednesday morning; later, he was shot by police. The French interior minister praised the swift intervention of police that said had helped prevent fatalities. The knifeman attacked several people, including a police officer, with a “bladed weapon” during the morning rush hour at around 6:43 a.m. Gerald Darmanin, the interior minister, told reporters at the scene, flanked by Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo.
Darmanin said the unnamed assailant was currently “between life and death” in a hospital. French media reported that he was shot in the chest. Darmanin thanked the police “for their effective and courageous reaction.” “Without the extremely rapid intervention, there would surely be deaths,” he said, detailing how the knifeman was neutralized within one minute of attacking his first victim.
“At 6:42, the first acts were described. At 6:43, the police used their administrative weapon after his passage of violence,” he said.
Several passengers and a border police officer were among the wounded, according to officials. The officer was stabbed in the back by the assailant but was saved by a bulletproof vest, Darmanin said. According to French media, five victims sustained light injuries, while one was seriously injured in the shoulder blade and taken for emergency treatment.
