Policeman and his partner killed in Paris terrorist attack
A French police chief and his partner were killed late last night, in a knife attack claimed by Islamic State (Isis).
The policeman was stabbed to death in front of his home in the Paris suburb of Magnanville, and his partner's body was found inside the building, officials said.
The attacker barricaded himself inside his victims' home after killing the policeman, taking the officer's partner and three-year-old son hostage. The killer was shot dead by members of an elite police unit after negotiations failed. The young boy was rescued by commandos from the RAID police unit, "in shock but unharmed", a prosecutor said.
Police and judicial sources said that the attacker was a 25-year-old man who had been monitored by security and anti-terrorist services after he received a three-year prison sentence in 2013 for helping Islamist militants go to Pakistan.
Isis claimed responsibility for the attack via its news agency Amaq, saying in a statement: "Source to Amaq agency: Islamic State fighter kills deputy chief of the police station in the city of Les Mureaux and his wife."
The French government said the incident was a terrorist attack. France has been on high alert since terrorist attacks in the capital city last November, in which 130 people were killed. Security has been heightened again in recent weeks with the beginning of the Euro 2016 football championship, taking place across France.