A photo shows the Pyramid (L) of the Louvre museum and the Arc de Triomphe of the Carrousel (C) on February 3, 2017 in Paris, after a soldier patrolling at the museum shot and seriously injured a machete-wielding man who yelled “Allahu Akbar” (“God is greatest”) as he attacked security forces. (Getty)
A suspected terrorist wielding a machete attacked soldiers outside the world famed art museum in Paris, the Louvre.
No one died in the attack, but it led to several terrifying moments outside the museum that displays works like the Mona Lisa. U.S. President Donald Trump used the attack to implore Americans to “get smart.”
The latest attack comes as France recovers from a string of terrorist attacks over the past year.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. The Man Shouted ‘Allahu Akbar’
A police officer stands guard near the Louvre museum on February 3, 2017 in Paris. (Getty)
Early reports say the man shouted the Arabic phrase used by Muslims for God is great, ABC News reported.
Other terrorist attacks in the past have had led to similar reports, although sometimes they don’t end up being true.
2. The Man Targeted a Group of Soldiers
Policemen patrol near the Louvre museum. (Getty)
The man ran up to a group of soldiers standing outside the Louvre in what is being described as a knife attack.
He was carrying a machete. The man became enraged when soldiers said he couldn’t bring his bags into the shopping mall under the Louvre, ABC reported.
3. Trump tweeted that the man was a ‘Radical Islamic Terrorist’
A French soldier stands guard near the Louvre. (Getty)
It didn’t take long for Donald Trump to weigh in, highlighting the attack and referring to the suspect as a radical Islamic terrorist. He urged Americans to “get smart” and said the popular tourist destination, the Louvre, was locked down.
A new radical Islamic terrorist has just attacked in Louvre Museum in Paris. Tourists were locked down. France on edge again. GET SMART U.S.
The new president has made an immigration crackdown his big move out of the gate, but it’s not yet clear what the Louvre attacker’s name is or his country of origin.
4. A Soldier Shot the Man, Who Carried Two Backpacks
The scene near the Louvre. (Getty)
The man didn’t manage to do much damage because a soldier opened fire and shot him. He didn’t make it to the museum’s entrance, and his backpacks didn’t contain explosives, according to The New York Times.
The terrorist is still alive and is in custody as police further investigate the attack. Fox News reported that the suspect was shot five times and is in grave condition.
A soldier did suffer a minor injury in the attack.
5. The Attack Comes on the Heels of a Mosque Attack by a Canadian With Right Wing Views
Canadian police officers respond to a shooting in a mosque at the Québec City Islamic cultural center on Sainte-Foy Street in Quebec city on January 29, 2017. (Getty)
The Louvre attack comes just days after Alexandre Bissonnette was accused of entering a mosque in Quebec and shooting six people to death who were praying.
France has suffered a string of terrorist attacks, including the Bastille Day attack last summer and the attack on a Paris nightclub.
