Police shoot assailant near Notre Dame

Wielding a hammer near the iconic cathedral in the French capital, the man cried out, 'This is for Syria!'

An assailant wielding a hammer attacked Paris police guarding Notre Dame Cathedral on Tuesday, crying “This is for Syria!” before being shot and wounded by officers outside one of France’s most popular tourist sites.

At least 600 people were blocked inside the iconic 12th century church while police first secured the streets around it, then combed the pews while visitors sat with their hands raised for the check. Others fled in panic from the sprawling esplanade outside the cathedral.

The assault was the latest act of violence targeting security forces at highprofile sites in France, which remains under a state of emergency after a string of Islamic extremist attacks.

No group immediately claimed responsibility, but police searching a residence linked to the attacker in the Paris suburb of CergyPontoise found a declaration of allegiance to the Islamic State group, according to the Paris prosecutor’s office.

Interior Minister Gerard Collomb told reporters that a police officer in a threeperson patrol was lightly injured in the attack, and the assailant was shot and wounded by a fellow officer. The attacker’s condition was being evaluated.

“A person came up behind the police officers, armed with a hammer, and started to hit the police officer,” he said.

The man yelled “This is for Syria,” Collomb said, adding that the attacker ap- peared to have acted alone.

A hammer and kitchen knives were found on the assailant, as well as a stu- dent identity card indi- cating he was from Alge- ria, Collomb said. He said authorities were working to verify the card’s authenticity.