A priest of a Greek Orthodox church was shot on Saturday afternoon in the eastern French city of Lyon. The as yet unknown perpetrator fled.
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The incident occurred around 4 p.m. on Saturday: when the priest of Greek nationality wanted to shut down his church, he was shot by a man with a sawed-off shotgun. The victim was hit twice and is “in serious shape,” according to a police source. The perpetrator fled after the incident, the police are currently conducting a manhunt for the man.
The Ministry of the Interior reports via Twitter that the emergency and security services are on the spot. People are also asked to stay away from the area surrounding the incident.
Situation tense
The situation in France has been very tense since history teacher Samuel Paty was beheaded for showing cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad in class in a lesson on freedom of speech. On Thursday, three more people were killed with a knife in a Catholic church in Nice. It is not yet clear whether there is a connection with this shooting.
French President Macron announced on Thursday that he had ordered 7,000 soldiers to protect places of worship and schools. In addition, 7,000 police officers were also requisitioned, they would be deployed from Monday to ensure public safety.
