Two Afghans Killed and Nine Injured in a Car Attack in Northwestern France

Two Afghans Killed and Nine Injured in a Car Attack in Northwestern France

Two Afghan citizens were killed and nine other people injured following a car attack targeting a group of individuals in the city of Caen in the Normandy region of northwestern France. The French authorities, in the initial reports, have ruled out the presence of terrorist motives behind the incident.

According to French media, the incident occurred late Wednesday evening near the Caen harbor, following a brawl that broke out outside a bar and subsequently escalated into a deliberate vehicular assault.

The police reported that the suspect had been assaulted by several individuals outside the bar before he returned to his car and drove towards the bus lanes in front of Caen station, intentionally steering the vehicle into a group of people present at the scene.

Authorities confirmed the death of two Afghan men, aged 35 and 28, and noted that nine others were injured, aged between 17 and 35 years, belonging to various nationalities including French, Egyptian, and Bangladeshi.

The local prosecutor’s office has opened an investigation to ascertain the circumstances and motives of the incident, emphasizing that the investigation is still in its early stages and that the available data so far does not indicate a terrorist motive.

According to French authorities, the suspect is a legal resident in France and has no criminal record, nor was he known to the intelligence services.

Relevant authorities continue to investigate the circumstances of the brawl that preceded the vehicular attack and the sequence of events that led to the casualties, in preparation for determining legal responsibilities and uncovering the full motives behind the incident.