Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Police spokeswoman Johanna Primevert: "The man threw himself at the soldier"

A French soldier guarding the Louvre in Paris has shot a man who tried to attack a security patrol with a machete shouting "Allahu Akbar", police say.

The man, who tried to gain entry to the Louvre's shopping centre, was shot in the abdomen and seriously injured.

Reports say he is an Egyptian man, 29, who arrived in France last month. Police have not released his identity.

President Francois Hollande said the situation was under control but the "threat of terrorism is here to stay".

The Louvre, which is home to numerous celebrated art works, including the Mona Lisa, is due to reopen on Saturday.

The incident began at 10:00 local time (09:00 GMT) in the Carrousel du Louvre shopping centre at stairs leading to an entrance to the museum itself.

A patrol of four soldiers are reported to have tried to subdue the assailant using non-lethal force after he rushed at them.

Image copyright AP Image caption This image has been circulating on French media - said to show the suspect on the floor of the Louvre museum surrounded by two armed soldiers

When this failed and after one soldier was injured, five shots were fired. The suspected attacker was taken to hospital in a critical condition.

An image circulating in French media, said to have been taken by a tour guide, shows what is believed to be the suspect lying at the foot of the stairs, surrounded by armed soldiers.

Two rucksacks belonging to the suspect, who shouted "God is greatest" in Arabic, have been inspected but no explosives were found.

There were reports of a second arrest, but the prosecutor's office later told the BBC this was not the case.

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Eyewitness: 'We saw death coming for us at Louvre'

Le Figaro newspaper reports that the suspect is an Egyptian who entered France on 26 January from Dubai. Investigators are still reportedly trying to establish his identity.

A number of police raids have been carried out in Paris, including one near the capital's famed boulevard, Champs-Elysees Avenue, and another in its 8th district (arrondissement).

President Hollande praised the soldiers' actions, saying "this operation prevented an attack whose terrorist nature leaves little doubt".

He told reporters at an EU summit in Malta on Friday that he expected the suspect to be questioned "when it is possible to do so".

Fewer foreigners visit Paris galleries

Freedom under threat in France

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Hundreds of visitors in the Louvre at the time were held in secure areas of the museum, before they were evacuated gradually after security checks.

As the attack unfolded, they were told by security staff to crouch on the floor.

Witnesses described scenes of panic.

One woman, who works at a restaurant in the Louvre, told the AFP news agency: "We saw death coming for us, with everything that's happening at the moment. We were very, very scared."

France has been on a high state of alert since the Paris attacks of 2015. Thousands of troops on the streets form part of the stepped-up response.

A series of assaults by gunmen and suicide bombers claimed by so-called Islamic State killed 130 people in November 2015.

In January of the same year, 17 people were killed in an attack on the Charlie Hebdo magazine and linked shootings.

Last July, 86 people were killed when a lorry ploughed through crowds celebrating Bastille Day in Nice.

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Visitors inside the museum were told to sit on the ground in a locked room as the area was put on lockdown

Security has become a theme of the French presidential election in April, which sees far-right leader Marine Le Pen and centrist independent Emmanuel Macron leading the polls.

Though still hugely popular, the Louvre has suffered a drop in visitor numbers amid fears of a militant attack.

It was ranked as the world's most visited museum in 2015 but there are doubts whether it still holds the top spot.</s>A French soldier on Friday opened fire on and wounded a man armed with a knife after he tried to enter the Louvre museum in central Paris carrying a suitcase, police sources said.

[PARIS] A French soldier on Friday opened fire on and wounded a man armed with a knife after he tried to enter the Louvre musuem in central Paris carrying a suitcase, police sources said.

One source said the man had been trying to get into the museum's underground shop and had attacked another soldier before being shot and seriously wounded.

Police said the area had been evacuated.

The interior ministry said on Twitter the incident was "serious".

A spokewoman for Louvre said the museum was "closed for the moment" but would not confirm reports it had been evacuated.

A Reuters witness at the scene said police had cordoned off access to the museum.

France has been hit by a series of militant Islamist attacks over the past two years.</s>A French soldier on Friday opened fire on and wounded a man armed with a knife after he tried to enter the Louvre museum in central Paris carrying a suitcase, police sources said.

One source said the man had been trying to get into the museum's underground shop and had attacked another soldier before being shot and seriously wounded.

Police said the area had been evacuated.

The interior ministry said on Twitter the incident was "serious".

A spokewoman for Louvre said the museum was "closed for the moment" but would not confirm reports it had been evacuated.

A Reuters witness at the scene said police had cordoned off access to the museum.

France has been hit by a series of militant Islamist attacks over the past two years.</s>A French soldier on Friday shot and wounded a man armed with a knife after he tried to enter the Louvre museum in central Paris carrying a suitcase, police sources said.

One source said the man had been trying to get into the museum’s shopping mall and had attacked another soldier before being shot and seriously wounded.

Police said the area had been evacuated and the interior ministry said on Twitter the incident was “serious.”

READ MORE: One year later, France marks Paris Attacks with plaque, concert

Louvre officials said the museum was closed and that visitors already inside when the attack took place were being kept there.

A Reuters witness at the scene said police had cordoned off access to the museum.

France has been hit by a series of militant Islamist attacks

over the past two years that have killed more than 230 people and which have been claimed by the militant Islamist group Islamic State.

The most recent deadly attack took place in the southern city of Nice when a man drove a truck into a crowd on the seafront killing 86.

READ MORE: Global News journalist reflects on Paris attacks as France remembers one year later

Two potential attacks were thwarted in September including one by a group of women who parked a car containing gas canisters near Paris’s Notre Dame Cathedral.

The country is less than three months away from a presidential election in which security and fears of terrorism are among the key issues.</s>(CNN) — A soldier on duty at a shopping mall near the Louvre museum in Paris opened fire on a man who attempted to attack him with a knife, local media reports say Friday.

The man was seriously injured, CNN affiliate BFMTV says.

The French Interior Ministry tweets there is an ongoing “serious security incident” near the Louvre. A following tweet confirms there was an attacker armed with a machete who encountered an officer.

BFMTV says the Louvre was evacuated and local metro stations closed.</s>The area around the Louvre Museum in Paris was blocked off Friday after a soldier shot a man wielding a knife, according to media reports. Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said the attack was “obviously terrorist,” the news outlet France 3 Paris reported.

Le Monde reported that the incident happened at the Carrousel du Louvre, an underground shopping center near the entrance to the world-famous museum.

Reuters said the man tried to enter the museum's shopping mall with a suitcase before attacking the soldier. Another soldier shot and seriously wounded the assailant, Reuters said.

The attacker was shot in the legs and the soldier was injured on the arm, thelocal.fr reported. A second suspect has been arrested and his role is still to be determined, the Interior Ministry said.

BFM TV said the man, who had two briefcases, pulled out a knife and attacked the soldier after he was refused entry to the center.

Museum officials said the Louvre was closed and that visitors who were inside at the time of the attack remained there.

France is on high alert after a series of terror attacks, including a coordinated attack in Paris in Nov. 2015 that killed 130 people, and a truck attack in Nice in July that killed more than 80 people. The Islamic State claimed responsibility for both attacks.</s>CNN) -- French authorities have opened a terror investigation after a solider shot a man wielding a machete near the Louvre museum in Paris.

The man had rushed towards a group of soldiers and guards in the Carrousel du Louvre, the underground plaza adjoining the museum, according to Paris police chief Michel Cadot. Wielding the weapon, the man shouted "Allahu akbar" (God is greatest), Cadot said.

The soldier fired five shots in response.

The attacker was wearing two backpacks and may have had a second weapon, Cadot said. He was seriously injured by a bullet to the stomach. One solider was slightly injured on the scalp.

No explosives were found in the two backpacks of the man, who was taken into custody alive and conscious. He was tended to by the fire service, Cadot said.

A second person was arrested, the French Interior Ministry said, although it was not immediately clear whether they were connected to the attack.

The French Prime Minister, Bernard Cazeneuve, described the attack as "terrorist in nature". The Paris prosecutor announced a terror investigation.

About 250 visitors who were in the Louvre museum at the time were taken to a secure area and were being evacuated in small groups after checks were carried out.

A security cordon was set up after the incident, which began at 10 a.m. (4 a.m. ET.)

French Interior Minister Bruno Le Roux hailed the police and military for their calm and professionalism in subduing the attacker -- and said the incident was a reminder of the present threat.

The mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, added: "In this context of terrorist threat that concerns every big city in the world, we saw how efficient and relevant Paris security features were."

A music producer from Florida, VoiceB0xx, tweeted that "something is going down" at the Louvre, saying he saw "30 National Police vehicles with guns drawn."

The Louvre, voted the most popular museum in the world in 2016, is home to the Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo and the Code of Hammurabi, among other famous works.

But since a series of terror attacks have plagued France, visitors to the Parisian institution have fallen.

Last year, 7.3 million people visited the museum, a 15% drop from 2015, according to French news agency AFP.

A state of emergency has been in place across France since the Paris terror attacks in November 2015, in which 130 people were killed and hundreds injured. In January that year, 17 people were killed in attacks on the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, a kosher grocery store, and the Paris suburb of Montrouge.

Last July, a radicalized Tunisian plowed a 20-ton truck into crowds on the Promenade des Anglais in Nice during a Bastille Day celebration, killing 86 people and injuring 200 others.

CNN's Kara Fox and Lindsay Isaac contributed to this report..</s>PARIS (CNN) – French authorities have opened a terror investigation after a soldier shot a man wielding a machete near the Louvre museum in Paris.

The man had rushed toward a group of soldiers and guards in the Carrousel du Louvre, the underground plaza adjoining the museum, according to Paris Police Chief Michel Cadot. Wielding the weapon, the man shouted “Allahu akbar,” Cadot said. The Arabic phrase translates to “God is greatest.”

The soldier fired five shots in response.

The attacker was wearing two backpacks and may have had a second weapon, Cadot said. He was seriously injured by a bullet to the stomach. One soldier was slightly injured on the scalp.

No explosives were found in the two backpacks of the man, who was conscious when he was taken into custody, Cadot said.

The attacker has been taken to a Paris hospital for treatment, CNN’s French affiliate BFM-TV reported. He was not carrying identity documents and was not in a fit state to be questioned, it said.

Another person was also arrested, the French Interior Ministry said, although it was not immediately clear whether he or she was connected to the attack.

French Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve described the attack as “terrorist in nature.” The Paris prosecutor announced a terror investigation

About 250 visitors who were in the Louvre museum at the time were taken to a secure area and were being evacuated in small groups after checks were carried out.

A security cordon was set up after the incident, which began at 10 a.m. (4 a.m. ET.)

French President Francois Hollande praised the response to the attack, tweeting: “I salute the courage and determination showed by the military this morning at the Carrousel du Louvre.”

French Interior Minister Bruno Le Roux also hailed the police and military for their calm and professionalism in subduing the attacker — and said the incident was a reminder of the current threat.

The mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, added: “In this context of terrorist threat that concerns every big city in the world, we saw how efficient and relevant Paris security features were.”

In response to the attack, US President Donald Trump tweeted: “A new radical Islamic terrorist has just attacked in Louvre Museum in Paris. Tourists were locked down. France on edge again. GET SMART U.S.”

As the incident unfolded, a music producer from Florida tweeted that “something is going down” at the Louvre, adding that he saw “30 National Police vehicles with guns drawn.”

The Louvre, voted the most popular museum in the world in 2016, is home to the Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo and the Code of Hammurabi, among other famous works.

But since a series of terror attacks have plagued France, the number of visitors touring the Parisian institution has fallen.

Last year, 7.3 million people visited the museum, a 15% drop from 2015, according to French news agency AFP.

A state of emergency has been in place across France since the Paris terror attacks in November 2015, in which 130 people were killed and hundreds injured. In January that year, 17 people were killed in attacks in Paris on the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo and at a kosher grocery store, and in the Paris suburb of Montrouge.

Last July, a radicalized Tunisian plowed a 20-ton truck into crowds on the Promenade des Anglais in Nice during a Bastille Day celebration, killing 86 people and injuring 200 others.</s>A machete-wielding man has been shot and wounded by a French soldier near the Louvre Museum in central Paris after an apparent attack on a second soldier.

The individual, carrying a backpack, cried out “Allahu Akbar” according to Michel Cadot, the head of Paris’s police force. One soldier was lighty injured. The soldier’s partner fired five shots at the attacker. No explosives were found in the attacker’s bag, Cadot said.</s>(CNN) — A soldier on duty near the Louvre museum in the French capital, Paris, opened fire on a man who attempted to attack him with a knife, officials said.

The man had rushed towards a group of soldiers and guards in the Carrousel du Louvre, the underground plaza near the museum, according to Michel Cadot, the Paris prefect. The soldier fired five shots.

The attacker was armed with a knife, was wearing two backpacks and may have had a second weapon. He was seriously injured by a bullet to the stomach, Cadot said. The soldier was lightly injured.

No explosives were found in the man’s backpacks. The suspect has been taken into custody alive.

About 200 people are in lock-down inside the Carrousel du Louvre shopping mall and the metro station has been shut down, Cadot said.

The French Interior Ministry tweeted that there was an ongoing “serious security incident” near the Louvre.
A French Army soldier shoots and wounds a man armed with a knife who was trying to enter an underground shopping area near the Louvre in Paris. The museum was evacuated.