French President Francois Hollande says all signs point to terrorism in an attack on the Champs-Elysees in Paris that killed one policeman Thursday night and wounded two others.
Hollande said security will be tightened ahead of Sunday's presidential election. "We shall be of the utmost vigilance, especially in relation to the election," he told the nation on television.
Piecing together reports from witnesses, investigators said a gunman jumped out of a car near a subway station and opened fire on a police vehicle with a machine gun. He was killed by police gunfire. It is unclear if anyone else was involved.
Islamic State, which claimed responsibility through its news agency, identified the shooter as "Abu Yussef the Belgian," calling him "one of Islamic State's fighters."
Paris police said the dead gunman has been identified, but they have not released his name or said if he was working with Islamic State.
Police closed off a large part of the Champs-Elysees, one of the world's most renowned boulevards, popular with residents and tourists for its fashionable shops and restaurants.
In Washington, President Donald Trump sent condolences to the French people. He called the attack "a terrible thing," and said it was another example of the sort of violence that "never ends."
France is on edge ahead of Sunday's presidential election, with a very close outcome expected. The country is still feeling the effects of a series of deadly Islamic terrorist attacks over the past two years that killed more than 200 people.
