British teenagers trapped in terror lockdown as machete man is shot at the Louvre
Foreign Office travel advice was updated, warning travellers that visitors to the area around the worldfamous historic monument should “exercise caution”.
Theresa May’s spokesman added: “The Foreign Office has been liaising with their counterparts in France. Obviously, we are ready to assist if required.”
The attack happened in an underground shopping area inside the complex housing famous works including Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa.
Police union official Yves Lefebvre said the assailant, carrying two backpacks and two machetes, set upon the soldiers after being barred entry.
He then rushed past them and ran down an escalator, where he was confronted by four paratroopers who patrol the gallery as part of an ongoing terror crackdown.
Mr Lefebvre added: “That’s when he got the knife out and that’s when he tried to stab a soldier.
“The man was shouting ‘Allahu Akbar’ and touched a soldier’s scalp as his colleagues opened fire.
“We are dealing with an attack from an individual who was clearly aggressive and represented a direct threat, and whose comments lead us to believe that he wished to carry out a terrorist incident.
“There was also a second individual who was behaving suspiciously, who has also been detained, but for now there does not appear to be a link.”
Mobile phone footage shows the attacker wearing light trousers and a black top as he lies in a crumpled heap at the bottom of a flight of stairs.
Canadian tourist John O’Shea, said: “It’s very frightening.
“Everybody is talking terrorism, but 52, we really don’t know what’s going on. Apparently a number of shots were fired.”
Police raided a number of properties in connection with the attack, including one near the Champs-Elysees.
Paris has been on a high terrorist threat level following the coordinated attacks by Islamic State gunmen and suicide bombers on November 13, 2015, which left 130 people dead and hundreds wounded.
Anne Hidalgo, the city’s mayor, visited the scene afterwards, praising the security team’s “extreme efficiency”.
President Francois Hollande said the situation was under control but warned: “The threat of terrorism is here to stay”. A tourist’s film of the attacker being shot by soldiers, after which security tightened at the Louvre, below