France: Claude Sinké, a former soldier and former election candidate for Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally, has been arrested for allegedly shooting and injuring two Muslim worshipers at a mosque in Bayonne, south-western France on Monday.
The 84-year-old suspect, fired indiscriminately at people praying inside the mosque, wounding two elderly men in the process, Anadolu News Agency reported while citing French newspaper Sud Ouest.
Patrice Peyruqueou, a police union official in Bayonne, said: “The suspect threw an incendiary device at the mosque and then drove away. He was apparently trying to set fire to the mosque when two worshippers intervened and he shot them.”
One of the worshippers was hit in the chest. The two wounded persons, aged 78 and 74, were rushed to a hospital with serious injuries.
Claude was arrested at his residence around 10 kilometers away in Saint-Martin-de-Seignanx after fleeing the spot by a car.
Claude reportedly confessed to the crime but did not speak on his motive for the same. He has zero criminal records and wasn’t on the radar of French intelligence agencies.
A source close to the investigation said: “There was widespread panic at the mosque. There were a lot of people inside at the time.”
According to local media reports, police seized a gas canister and a handgun in his car.
French President Emmanuel Macron tweeted his condemnation over the "odious attack", saying his thoughts are with the victims.
"The Republic will never tolerate hatred. Everything will be done to punish the perpetrators and protect our compatriots of the Muslim faith," he said.
An investigation into the shooting is underway.
The incident follows an increase in attempts to vandalize mosques in France.
