A gunman opened fire from a car west of Paris on Friday morning, killing one person and wounding five others in what President Emmanuel Macron called a racist terrorist attack.
Zoom in: The 39-year-old suspect, named by France's anti-terrorism prosecutor as Kevin T., drove through Trappes and La Verriere in Yvelines from about 10.30am. Over 15 minutes he repeatedly fired an automatic weapon, first at a petrol station, then a medical centre and a children's playground.
- Police stopped him in his car and found a sten gun, a British submachine gun from the second world war, along with teargas grenades. Authorities said he had booby-trapped his home with gas canisters and wires connected to a timer.
By the numbers: The 12-year-old girl was shot eight times and was being treated at a children's hospital on Friday night. The prosecutor said in a statement that the medical status of all five wounded victims remained unstable.
- The man killed was named as Pengo Bossio Wangi by the mixed martial arts academy he belonged to, which paid tribute to a member who set an example.
What they're saying: "What happened today marks a turning point for our country; what happened today was a terrorist and racist attack," Macron said after arriving at the scene, adding that the gunman targeted people because of the colour of their skin.
- Ali Rabeh, the mayor of Trappes, said the gunman set out firing at random, wanting to cause a bloodbath, and called it objectively a racist attack, probably Islamophobic.
The backstory: France is already tense. Last Saturday brought one of the most violent days of unrest in years, with public buildings burned, hundreds of shops destroyed and looted and at least 2,400 people arrested in cities across the country.
Between the lines: Anti-terrorism prosecutors are investigating whether the gunman targeted the real or supposed race, ethnicity, nationality or religion of his victims. A member of his family was arrested and taken into custody for questioning.
The other side: Communist candidate Fabien Roussel wrote that the far right bears responsibility for racist hatred in France. Marine Le Pen, whose National Rally is polling strongly ahead of next spring's presidential election, condemned what she called the abject motive of racism of a barbaric act.
Why it matters: Macron asked the country for respect and unity, saying many French people would be frightened and thinking this could happen to me. Fresh protests over teacher shortages, school buildings and the cost of living were already expected on Saturday.
