French police opened fire on a woman after she threatened to blow herself up on a train heading into Paris on Tuesday.
The woman reportedly threatened other passengers and yelled phrases like, “You’re all going to get it,” “Allahu Akbar” and “Boom,” said Paris Police Chief Laurent Nunez.
The woman was wearing a long robe known as an abaya, as well as a hijab, clothing typically worn by Muslims.
Two Paris police officers stopped the woman at the Bibliotheque François-Mitterrand station, in eastern Paris, where they initially attempted to calm down the woman before they “had no option but to open fire on this woman given the danger of the situation,” according to government spokesperson Olivier Veran.
Authorities said the woman was shot eight times and was treated on the scene by the Fire Service before being transferred to a nearby hospital, where she is in critical condition.
An investigation was launched into both the exact nature of the woman’s threats, as well as the use of firearms by the officers, which officials say happens every time a service weapon is discharged.
According to the police chief, a search of the woman concluded that she did not have any explosives on her at the time.
The suspect’s identity has not been confirmed, although there were indications the same person previously threatened urban patrols of the counterterrorism Sentinelle operation and had been put in a psychiatric ward over mental health issues.
France has been on heightened alert for attacks following the suspected Islamist attack in which a French school teacher was stabbed to death on Oct. 13.
Some information in this report was taken from The Associated Press and Reuters.
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