Update: FRENCH INTERIOR MINISTER GERARD COLLOMB SAYS CHAMPS-ELYSEE CAR CONTAINED EXPLOSIVES, DRIVER DEAD
Additionally, according to AFP, a Kalashnikov, handguns and gas bottles were found in the Champs-Elysees car.
More from AP:
France’s interior minister says that a driver who rammed a car carrying explosives into a police convoy on the Champs-Elysees avenue has died after the “attempted attack” on security forces.
Gerard Collomb told reporters near the scene Monday that the man’s motives weren’t immediately clear.
Bomb squad officers are the scene on the city’s most famous avenue, which is popular with tourists. It was the second major incident on the avenue this year.
An attacker defending the Islamic State group shot and killed a police officer on the Champs-Elysees in April, days before a presidential election, prompting an extensive security operation.
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There has been an incident on Paris' Champs Elysees, which has been cordoned off, with heavy police presence when car exploded after ramming a police van. According to AFP, the French police say the car ramed a police van before bursting into flames. The suspected driver was 'downed' after driving into police car on Champs-Elysees and has been arrested. According to AFP, the car driver was armed.
The AP adds that two French police officials said that a suspected attacker drove into a police vehicle on the Champs-Elysees shopping district in Paris, and is now lying on the ground immobilized. The suspect was wearing a white shirt and dark shorts.
The French national gendarmerie service says the driver of a car that rammed a law enforcement vehicle has been arrested and no one was hurt in the incident.
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Incident on the #ChampsElysees. Heavy police presence and witnesses say they saw a car catch fire. One man on the ground pic.twitter.com/b5mQ9nYeQa
— Melissa Bell (@MelissaBellCNN)
#BREAKING Car crashes into police van on Paris's Champs-Elysees, no casualties: official
— AFP news agency (@AFP)
The police has confirmed an ongoing intervention on the famous Paris street and has asked people to avoid the area.
???? #ChampsElysées Intervention en cours des services de police. Évitez le secteur
— Préfecture de police (@prefpolice)
Some speculate the car may have exploded after hitting the van.
Possible car explosion at #ChampsElysees in #Paris, major police at scene. #France pic.twitter.com/MHG8MqerT6
— Raveen Aujmaya (@raveenaujmaya)
According to the police, the ramming driver caused no serious injuries.
Developing
