Macron Calls Trappes Shooting a 'Racist Terrorist Attack' as France Reels From 15-Minute Rampage

French President Emmanuel Macron has described a deadly shooting in the Paris suburbs as a 'racist terrorist attack', calling it a turning point for the country. One person was killed and five others wounded, including a 12-year-old girl, when a gunman fired from his car in Trappes and nearby La Verriere on Friday morning.
The rampage lasted about 15 minutes, with the attacker firing at a petrol station, a medical centre and a children's playground. Police arrested the 39-year-old suspect, named as Kevin T, in nearby Coignieres less than 20 minutes after the shooting began. Officers found a Second World War-era Sten submachine gun and tear-gas grenades in his car, and investigators say he had booby-trapped his home with gas canisters and electric wires connected to a timer. A member of his immediate family was also taken into custody. France's anti-terrorism prosecutor has opened an investigation into murder and attempted murder in connection with a terrorist enterprise, examining whether victims were targeted because of their race, ethnicity, nationality or religion. Visiting Trappes on Friday, Macron said the victims were targeted because of their skin colour or religion, and that the gunman had deliberately spared some people because of their appearance. Trappes mayor Ali Rabeh called the attack racist and probably Islamophobic, as France braces for further cost-of-living protests this weekend.
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