Man stabs two people to death in Paris suburb; Islamic State claims responsibility

A man stabbed to death at least two people in the west Parisian suburb of Trappes on Thursday morning and seriously injured at least one more. The attacker was later killed by authorities, and an investigation into his motives is underway.

The Islamic State’s Amaq news agency claimed responsibility for the attack, writing — without evidence — that the attacker was one of the “fighters for the Islamic State.”

But authorities refrained from describing the incident as a terrorist attack, and there were conflicting reports over the attacker’s possible motivation. French media reported that the man had been on the country’s national security watch list since 2016 over defending a terrorist attack, but that Thursday’s incident might also have been a family dispute.

According to the French daily Le Parisien, two of the victims were family members.

During his encounter with police officers, the attacker later shouted “Allahu akbar” before being shot, according to Le Parisien.

“My first thoughts are with the victims and their loved ones,” said Gerard Collomb, the French interior minister. “I want to salute the response and the exemplary mobilization of our police forces. They are already investigating to establish the circumstances of this tragedy.”

The attack came just hours after Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi issued his first message in almost a year to mark the Islamic Eid al-Adha holiday and encouraged his followers to carry out lone-wolf attacks in Europe and North America, and “stab their bodies.”

Quentin Ariès in Brussels contributed to this report.

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