French soldier shoots machete-wielding attacker at the Louvre

French law enforcement responds to attack at the Louvre museum — (Image credit: Alain Jocard/AFP/Getty Images)

Friday morning, a man armed with at least one machete and carrying two bags tried to enter the gift shop under the Paris Louvre museum, attacked one of the soldiers who told him he couldn't enter, and yelled "Allahu Akbar" (God is great) before a soldier opened fire and shot him five times, including once in the abdomen, French officials say. "It was an attack by a person... who represented a direct threat and whose actions suggested a terrorist context," said Paris police chief Michel Cadot. The attacker is alive but in serious condition, and one soldier was grazed on the scalp. Both of the assailant's bags were searched and no explosives were found. Hundreds of visitors were inside the Louvre at the time, and they are slowly being evacuated.

France has been under a state of emergency since a deadly Islamist terrorist attack in Paris in November 2015, and it holds a presidential election less than three months from now. On Friday evening, Paris is planning to submit its bid to host the 2024 Olympic Games.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.