PARIS — French media reports say eight people have been injured in a shooting near a mosque in the southern city of Avignon in what appears to be a criminal settling of scores.

Local magistrate Laure Chabaud was quoted by La Provence and Le Dauphine Libere as saying that the mosque did not appear to be the target of the Sunday night shooting. La Provence quoted her as saying police have ruled out a terrorist motive.

Police and prosecutors did not respond to requests for comment early Monday.

The reports say the perpetrators fled.

No mosque was publicly listed at the reported address.

The shooting comes as France’s government prepares to extend a state of emergency in place since Islamic extremist attacks in 2015, citing continued threats.</s>Image copyright Reuters Image caption A seven-year-old girl was reportedly among those injured in the attack in Avignon, France

Eight people have been injured in a shooting outside a mosque in southern France, officials have confirmed.

Worshippers leaving the Arrahma mosque in Avignon were approached by two hooded suspects at about 22:30 local time (21:30 GMT) on Sunday.

The suspects, carrying a handgun and a shotgun, arrived in a Renault Clio before opening fire on the crowd, La Provence newspaper reports.

Police said they were not treating the incident as a terrorist attack.

Four people were wounded outside the mosque and a family of four - including a seven-year-old girl - also suffered injuries from shrapnel while in their apartment, located some 50 metres away, La Provence said, citing a source.

Image copyright @laprovence/Twitter

Two of the eight wounded were hospitalised, according to the source, who also said that worshippers leaving the mosque had not been the intended target.

An eyewitness interviewed at the scene said that dozens of people near the mosque started to run when they saw the two suspects exit the vehicle and approach them with firearms.

"It was a black Renault car," the witness said, adding: "There were four individuals, only two of them, who were seated in the back, stepped out and started shooting at everyone."

The Avignon attack is not being treated as a terrorist incident, the prosecutor's office said. "The fact that it happened in the street of the religious establishment was unconnected with it," the prosecutor said.

Laure Chabaud, a district magistrate, said that the incident was likely to be the result of a dispute between youths.

The criminal investigation department has taken charge of the case, AFP news agency reports.

On Thursday, a man was arrested after trying to drive a car into a crowd in front of a mosque in the Paris suburb of Creteil. No-one was injured in the incident.

France remains on alert amid heightened security following a deadly attack on Paris police in April and a series of terrorist incidents in recent years.

Get news from the BBC in your inbox, each weekday morning</s>Eight people have been injured in a shooting outside a mosque in southern France, officials have confirmed. Worshippers leaving the Arrahma …</s>Members of French special police forces of Research and Intervention Brigade (BRI) take part in a mock terrorist attack drill inside the European Council building in Brussels, Belgium, December 9, 2016. Thomson Reuters Eight people were injured after two gunmen reportedly opened fire near a mosque in Avignon, France, on Sunday, local media are reporting.

Muslim worshippers were leaving the Arrahma mosque and gathering in the street around 10:30 p.m. local time when the men, one of whom had exited a car, began opening fire, according to regional French newspaper La Provence.

The men carried a rifle and a handgun, according to the newspaper.

Four people were injured at the scene, and four others in a nearby apartment were wounded from flying shrapnel. One of the victims included a 7-year-old girl, La Provence reported. Two of the eight victims were hospitalized, the paper said.

The attackers are still at large, the newspaper said. Investigators reportedly suspect the incident was sparked by a personal dispute and do not suspect it was related to terrorism.

Avignon is located in southeastern France about 65 miles northwest of Marseille.</s>PARIS (AP) — French media reports say eight people have been injured in a shooting near a mosque in the southern city of Avignon in what appears to be a criminal settling of scores.

Local magistrate Laure Chabaud was quoted by La Provence and Le Dauphine Libere as saying that the mosque did not appear to be the target of the Sunday night shooting. La Provence quoted her as saying police have ruled out a terrorist motive.

Police and prosecutors did not respond to requests for comment early Monday.

The reports say the perpetrators fled.

No mosque was publicly listed at the reported address.

The shooting comes as France’s government prepares to extend a state of emergency in place since Islamic extremist attacks in 2015, citing continued threats.</s>French media reports say eight people have been injured in a shooting near a mosque in the southern city of Avignon in what appears to be a criminal settling of scores.

Local magistrate Laure Chabaud was quoted by La Provence and Le Dauphine Libere as saying that the mosque did not appear to be the target of the Sunday night shooting. La Provence quoted her as saying police have ruled out a terrorist motive.

Police and prosecutors did not respond to requests for comment early Monday.

The reports say the perpetrators fled.

No mosque was publicly listed at the reported address.

The shooting comes as France's government prepares to extend a state of emergency in place since Islamic extremist attacks in 2015, citing continued threats.</s>PARIS (AP) — French media reports say eight people have been injured in a shooting near a mosque in the southern city of Avignon in what appears to be a criminal settling of scores.

Local magistrate Laure Chabaud was quoted by La Provence and Le Dauphine Libere as saying that the mosque did not appear to be the target of the Sunday night shooting. La Provence quoted her as saying police have ruled out a terrorist motive.

Police and prosecutors did not respond to requests for comment early Monday.

The reports say the perpetrators fled.

No mosque was publicly listed at the reported address.

The shooting comes as France’s government prepares to extend a state of emergency in place since Islamic extremist attacks in 2015, citing continued threats.

Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.</s>French media reports say eight people have been injured in a shooting near a mosque in the southern city of Avignon in what appears to be a criminal settling of scores.

Local magistrate Laure Chabaud was quoted by La Provence and Le Dauphine Libere as saying that the mosque did not appear to be the target of the Sunday night shooting. La Provence quoted her as saying police have ruled out a terrorist motive.

Police and prosecutors did not respond to requests for comment early Monday.

The reports say the perpetrators fled.

No mosque was publicly listed at the reported address.

The shooting comes as France’s government prepares to extend a state of emergency in place since Islamic extremist attacks in 2015, citing continued threats.</s>PARIS — French media reports say eight people have been injured in a shooting near a mosque in the southern city of Avignon in what appears to be a criminal settling of scores.

Local magistrate Laure Chabaud was quoted by La Provence and Le Dauphine Libere as saying that the mosque did not appear to be the target of the Sunday night shooting. La Provence quoted her as saying police have ruled out a terrorist motive.

Police and prosecutors did not respond to requests for comment early Monday.

The reports say the perpetrators fled.

No mosque was publicly listed at the reported address.

The shooting comes as France’s government prepares to extend a state of emergency in place since Islamic extremist attacks in 2015, citing continued threats.</s>Eight people have been injured after gunmen reportedly opened fire outside a mosque in southeast France.

The shooting, which was not being treated as terrorism, took place in Avignon, Provence, at about 10.30pm on Sunday night.

Worshippers were leaving the Arrahma mosque when two "hooded men" pulled up in a Renault Clio.

Police said the crowd fled in panic when the gunmen started shooting, injuring four people at the scene, La Provence newspaper reported. A family of four in a nearby apartment received shrapnel wounds.

A seven-year-old girl was among those injured, the paper reported.

One of the attackers was carrying a handgun, while the other had a rifle.
Two gunmen open fire near a mosque in Avignon, France, injuring eight people. Two of the victims were hospitalised.