Emmanuel Macron condemns the attack in Trappes / One person was killed and five others were injured

French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday condemned an attack he described as terrorist and racist, carried out in the towns of Trappes and La Verrière, west of Paris. One man was killed and five other people were injured, including a 12-year-old girl who was shot eight times and hospitalized in serious condition.

The attack took place at around 10:30 a.m., when an armed man opened fire from a car at several locations in the two towns. According to investigators, the suspect first fired at a gas station, then near a medical center and a children's playground.

The suspect, a 39-year-old identified as Kevin T., was stopped by police while he was in his car. France's counterterrorism prosecutor took over the investigation. The mayor of Trappes said the attacker appeared to have sought to cause a massacre and that the victims may have been targeted on racial and religious grounds.

Macron visited the scene of the attack and called for unity, warning that racism has become part of public discourse and created a dangerous atmosphere in French society. Justice will determine the exact motive and circumstances of the attack.