'This is for Syria' Man attacks police outside Paris' Notre Dame Cathedral, 2,000 trapped
THOUSANDS of people were trapped inside the famous Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris after a man shouting "this is for Syria" attacked a policeman with a hammer before being shot and wounded by other officers.
Police rush to scene following reports of gunfire at Notre Dame
Tourists and worshippers were seen at 4.30pm local time (3.30pm BST) on Tuesday running away from the cathedral in the centre of the French capital.
Dozens of armed police sealed off the area and put the Gothic cathedral into lockdown with nearly 1,000 tourists and worshippers inside.
Police shot a man who attempted to attack multiple officers with a hammer outside the popular tourist destination visited by million every year.
French interior minister Gerard Collomb, said the attacker shouted: "This is for Syria" and in custody, he told police he is "a soldier of the Caliphate".
The Paris prosecutor's office has launched a counter-terrorism investigation into the attack, the first since President Emmanuel Macron won power last month and days before the first round of a parliamentary election in France.
A man was seen on the ground outside Notre Dame Cathedral
We have moved on from sophisticated terrorism to a form of terrorism where any object can be used to attack
Mr Macron wants to extend a state of emergency that has been in place since jihadi gunmen and suicide bombers killed 130 people in coordinated attacks on entertainment venues in Paris in November 2015.
Interior Minister Gerard Collomb said the attacker was carrying the identification card of an Algerian student and that preliminary information indicated he had acted alone.
Tuesday's attack had parallels with one in April when a militant shot dead one police officer and wounded two others on Paris' Champs-Elysees boulevard.
Other attacks have targeted the security forces and have been noticeable for their simplicity.
Mr Collomb said: “We have moved on from sophisticated terrorism to a form of terrorism where any object can be used to attack."
Paris Police's SGP Unit confirmed one of their officers was "slightly wounded in the head by a hammer blow" and was taken to hospital.
The attacker was held on the ground by police after being shot in the thorax because he refused to stop.
Visitors inside the cathedral tweeted their families saying they were trapped inside the building.
One of those trapped was Nancy Soderberg, former White House Deputy National Security Advisor.
A man was seen on the ground in the square outside the cathedral
She had been with her niece, Fraser, in London on Sunday, the day after the London Bridge terror attack.
Police told everybody in the cathedral to raise their arms to show they were not armed.
One holidaymaker inside Notre Dame wrote on Twitter: "Not the holiday experience wanted. Trapped in Notre Dame Cathedral after police shoot a man. We are with our 2 terrified children."
The streets surrounding Notre Dame were cleared by police.
A witness outside the cathedral, said: "I heard two explosions."
Paris police, tweeted: "A police intervention is in progress in the square in front of Our Lady Intervention, avoid the area."
Armed police guard Notre Dame following reports of gunfire
British tourist, Matthew Currie Holmes, wrote on Twitter: “So we are trapped in Notre Dame Cathedral. Something is happening outside we don't know what it is. Police sirens can be heard #NotreDame.
“Needless to say my family and I are a little on edge. We were in London when the London Bridge attacks happened.”
Matthew said police were asking everyone inside the Cathedral to raise their arms, suggesting they were looking for other armed assailants.
The motive for the attack was not immediately known.
Last September three women were arrested after police found a car laden with gas cylinders abandoned near Notre Dame Cathedral in what the interior ministry at the time said was a likely planned imminent attack.
All the tourists and worshippers had to put their hands in the air
Briton Matthew Currie Holmes took a picture of everybody trapped inside Notre Dame
Visitors were told to hold their hands up to check nobody was armed
France has been on high alert since the January 2015 attacks on the Charlie Hebdo offices and a Jewish supermarket in Paris which killed 17 people and wounded 22.
Since then soldiers have been patrolling streets alongisde police to protect tourist sites, government buildings and events.
In November 2015 during a series of coordinated terror attacks 130 people were killed by seven attackers.
Three suicide bombers struck outside the Stade de France during a football match.
Police cleared the area around the famous tourist attraction
Police were seen stopping traffic around the cathedral
There were then several mass shootings and a suicide bombing at cafes and restaurants.
Gunmen carried out another mass shooting and took hostages at an Eagles of Death Metal concert in the Bataclan theatre, killing 89 people.
The attackers then blew themselves up or were shot by police during a stand-off.
Another 368 people were injured, almost 100 seriously.