Paris police ambushed by hooded attackers

PARIS Michele Alliot-Marie called the Sunday afternoon attack an "ambush," saying that about 30 people, some of them armed, were waiting for the officers in the southern Paris suburb of Grigny. The officers were responding to a call about vandalism at a local bakery.

Three officers were hit in face with buckshot; another was hit in the leg with buckshot and nails and was hospitalized, Sunday's statement said.

The minister expressed "total support" for the officers, who she said work under "particularly difficult conditions."

Alliot-Marie said efforts were under way to identify and apprehend those involved in the incident.

In November, rioting youths in another Paris suburb opened fire on police, injuring at least 10.

That attack in Villiers-le-Bel fueled fears of a repeat of riots that raged across France's neglected suburbs for three weeks in November 2005. Police managed to bring last year's unrest under control in a matter of days.

Last month, police raided housing projects in Villiers-le-Bel and neighboring towns north of the French capital, detaining 35 people in connection with the riots there. Authorities have said youths organized a system to target police with gunfire.

 

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