ALERT: France- Ongoing Police Operation on the Champs Elysees (June 19, 2017)

June 19, 2017

A car intentionally hit a police van on the Champs Elysees and exploded. No officers or pedestrians were injured.

Some news reports state the situation is “under control” but police are still blocking the area. The nearest metro station, Champs-Elysées Clémenceau, has been closed.

Reuters reports:

A French police vehicle was hit on Monday by a car on Paris’ Champs Elysees avenue and the driver was arrested, police said, adding that no officers or bystanders were injured and the situation was under control.

Police cordoned off the area only a short walk away from Elysees presidential palace and the U.S. embassy, Reuters reporters on site said.

A police Twitter account advised the public to avoid the area.

France has been on high security alert following a series of terrorist attacks in recent years, including the shooting of a policeman in an Islamic State-claimed attack on a police bus on the Champs Elysees in April.

According to BBC News:

A car has crashed into a police van before bursting into flames around the Champs Elysees area of central Paris, police officials say.

The driver, who was armed, was knocked unconscious and is seriously injured, French media report.

Police say the situation is now under control, and neither law enforcement nor civilians were injured.

France is currently in a state of emergency after being hit by a wave of deadly terror attacks in recent years.

The national police Twitter account had earlier said (in French) that there was an “ongoing police operation”, warning people to respect the security cordon.

French media, quoting police sources, say the act was deliberate.

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