1 dead in France knife attack, Emmanuel Macron calls it 'Islamist terrorism'

One person was killed and three others, including two police officers, were wounded in a knife attack during a demonstration in eastern France. President Macron called it an Islamist terror act. The suspect, 37, was on a terror watchlist.

In Short

• Knife attack in France's Mulhouse leaves 1 dead, 3 injured
• Suspect, 37, on terror watchlist, faces expulsion
• Attack during Congo support demonstration

One person was killed and three people, including two cops, were wounded in a knife attack on Saturday in eastern France during a demonstration, the local prosecutor said. French President Emmanuel Macron said, "no doubt it is an Islamist terror act."

Three other officers sustained minor injuries in the attack in Mulhouse. The suspect, 37, is on a terror prevention watchlist, prosecutor Nicolas Heitz told news agency AFP.

The terror watch list, also known as FSPRT, compiles data from various authorities to monitor individuals and prevent radicalisation. It was introduced in 2015 after attacks on the offices of Charlie Hebdo and a Jewish supermarket.

One of the wounded officers suffered an injury to the carotid artery, and the other was wounded in the thorax, prosecutor Nicolas Heitz said.

Police set up a security perimeter after the attack, which took place shortly before 4 p.m. (1500 GMT) during a demonstration in support of Congo.

Union sources, in AFP's report, said the suspect, born in Algeria, was under judicial supervision and house arrest and faced an expulsion order from France.

“Horror has seized our city,” Mulhouse Mayor Michèle Lutz said on Facebook. She said the incident is being investigated as a terror attack but added that the judiciary would have to confirm it.

France’s national anti-terror prosecutors unit (PNAT) said it had taken over the investigation.