23 Dec 2014

Man rams van into Christmas market

10:19 am on 23 December 2014

A man driving a van ploughed into a crowds at a Christmas market in Nantes, western France, injuring 10 people.

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A bomb disposal unit checks the van used to plough into a Christmas market. Photo: AFP

Five people suffered serious injuries, including the driver, a police official told Reuters.

According to local newspaper Ouest France, citing a police officer and witnesses on the scene, the driver of the white van shouted "Allahu Akbar" ("God is greatest" in Arabic) and then stabbed himself with a knife.

The Christmas market was evacuated and secured by police, a Reuters witness reported.

The incident comes only a day after pedestrians were run down in Dijon.

The driver of the vehicle screamed "God is great" in Arabic.

On Sunday, a man police in Tours shot dead after he attacked them had used the same phrase.