France - France mosque shootings: Two injured in Bayonne attack

Published on October 28th, on BBC

Deeply concerned to hear about the anti-Muslim terrorist attack on a mosque in Bayonne, France, by a man with far-right links. As our French colleagues at @Le_CRIF have said, no one should be threatened because of their faith. #Bayonne #mosqueebayonne https://t.co/rfOCeMCFNN

— Board of Deputies of British Jews (@BoardofDeputies) 29 octobre 2019

The gunman was trying to set fire to the mosque's door and shot two men, both in their 70s, who surprised him, police said.

They were both seriously injured in the incident, which happened at 15:20 (14:20 GMT), and taken to hospital.

An 84-year-old man was later arrested near his home close to Bayonne. A gun and a gas canister were found in his car. He is a former ultra-right party candidate.

As he left the scene, the gunman also tried to set fire to a car, police said in a statement (in French).

French President Emmanuel Macron has strongly condemned what he described as an "odious" attack on the mosque.

"The Republic will never tolerate hatred," he said. "Everything will be done to punish the perpetrators and protect our compatriots of the Muslim faith."