Forensic police work at the scene of a stabbing in Paris on December 2, 2023. A person known to the French authorities as a radical Islamist with mental health troubles stabbed a German tourist to death and wounded two people in central Paris on December 2 before being arrested, officials said. (Photo by Dimitar DILKOFF / AFP)
The man who was killed during an attack near the Eiffel Tower in central Paris on Saturday was German-Filipino, the Embassy of France confirmed.
“Yesterday in Paris, a terrorist attack happened and a man was stabbed to death. He was a tourist, from German-Filipino nationality,” said French Ambassador to the Philippines Marie Fontanel in a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Sunday night.
“On behalf of the French government, I wish to address my deepest condolences to his family and relatives and to the Filipino and German people,” she added.
Apart from the fatality, two others were injured during the knife and hammer attack by the suspect, identified in reports as Armand Rajabpour-Miyandoab.
Reports said the attacker was known to authorities as a radical Islamist and was being treated for mental illness.
Police responding to the scene used a taser to neutralize the attacker, who was then arrested.
In an Associated Press report, France’s antiterrorism prosecutor said he has opened an investigation into the incident.
Jean-Francois Ricard said that the suspect could face a preliminary charge of murder in connection with a terrorist enterprise. He said Rajabpour-Miyandoab is a French national who is being held in police custody. INQ