By Omer Aydın
AVIGNON, France (AA): Eight people including a seven-year-old girl, were injured in a shooting outside a mosque in southern France, according to media reports.
Two men opened fire on a group that was stepping out the Arrahma Mosque in Avignon, according to the La Provence daily.
Four people were injured at the scene and four members of one family in an apartment 50 meters (165 feet) from the mosque also sustained shrapnel wounds.
Police are investigating the shooting but Avignon prosecutor Laure Chabaud said authorities are not evaluating the shooting as a terrorist attack.
“From what we know this evening, the mosque was not targeted. The fact that it happened in the street of the religious establishment was unconnected with it,” the prosecutor claimed.
The shooting comes days after a suspect allegedly attempted to drive a car into a crowd in front of Creteil mosque in southeast Paris.. Barriers in front of the mosque prevented the vehicle from reaching the crowd and no one was injured.
The 43-year-old driver hit barriers and pillars outside the mosque with his 4×4 without causing any injuries before crashing into a traffic island.
After the incident, Muslim officials called on the authorities to “strengthen protection of places of worship”.
Additiional report by The Muslim News
[Photo: French police by Roman Bonnefoy/ GNU Free Documentation License]
