French terrorism authorities are investigating a knife attack that wounded at least two people on Friday near the former offices of the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo in Paris, authorities said. A suspect has been arrested.
The area in eastern Paris remained cordoned off by police two hours after the attack. Children were being sequestered in nine schools while police worked to determine no other suspects were on the run, according to education and police officials.
It is unclear what motivated the attack or whether it was linked to Charlie Hebdo, which moved after its offices were targeted in a 2015 Islamic extremist attack that left 12 people dead.
Police cordoned off the area, including the former Charlie Hebdo offices, after a suspect package was noticed nearby, but the package was found to be harmless and no explosives were found, according a police official.
An investigation was opened into “attempted murder in relation with a terrorist enterprise,” according to an official at the prosecutor’s office.
Authorities did not release the identity of the suspect arrested in the area of the Bastille Plaza.
“I saw a guy that was in his 30s or 40s with an axe in his hand who was walking behind a victim covered in blood...I cant tell you how many victims there was, I just saw one,” witness Kader Alfa told The Associated Press at the scene.