A possible terrorist attack aimed at the Louvre would have been thwarted by a military guard. The soldier, at the small triumphal arch of the Carrousel, a stone's throw from the Parisian museum, in the Tuileries gardens, shot at a man who attempted to attack another soldier, wounding him in the trunk.
The attacker allegedly shouted "Allah Akhbar" and was holding a machete. According to police prefect Michel Cadot, he had two backpacks with him. In the backpacks, which were subjected to an inspection, "no explosives were found". Shortly after, a second person "with a suspicious attitude" who was near the Louvre was arrested.
“We are dealing – Cadot added – with an attack by a clearly aggressive individual who represented a direct threat. We are led to believe that he wanted to make a terroristic attack. There was also a second individual with suspicious behavior, who was arrested, but as of now there does not appear to be a link between the individual and the attack."
Even the French premier Bernard Cazeneuve, who returned to Paris urgently, confirms the hypothesis that it was a terrorist attack. The Ministry of the Interior has issued a notice asking to facilitate access to the area for security forces, while the Louvre district has been cordoned off. The museum was also closed, as were the Palais Royal and the adjoining metro.
