With the motives of the Champs-Elysées gunman considered terror-related, the timing just three days before the first round of the French presidential elections and during a prime time TV "debate" between all 11 official candidates clearly suggests that extremists are seeking to influence the tone of the debate - and perhaps its outcome.

If that was the aim, it was a success, as two candidates - Marine Le Pen, the far-Right Front National leader, and conservative François Fillon - cancelled visits on Friday - the final day of the campaign.

As they learned of the attack while on air, all the runners adapted their conclusions to pledge to protect the French. "Enough of laxism, enough of naivety," said Ms Le Pen in hers. "The fight against terrorism must be the absolute priority of the next French president," said Mr Fillon, who proposed arresting all suspects on an "S" watch list, like the gunman.</s>WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump says Thursday's fatal shooting in Paris "looks like another terrorist attack."

Paris police say a gunman has killed a police officer and wounded another before being killed himself in an attack on the Champs-Elysees shopping district.

It was unclear how Trump concluded that terrorism may have been a factor. Paris police haVE yet to announce a motive,

Trump is also offering condolences from the U.S. to the people of France.

He calls the attack a "terrible thing" and says "it never ends." He says people must be strong and vigilant.

The attack came three days before the first round of balloting in France's presidential election.</s>President Donald Trump responded to reports of a shooting Thursday in Paris by saying it looked like a terrorist attack.

"Our condolences from our country to the people of France," Trump said at a news conference alongside Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni.

Trump continued: "Again, it's happening, it seems. I just saw it as I was walking in, so that's a terrible thing. And that's a very, very terrible thing that's going on in the world today. But it looks like another terrorist attack. And what can you say? It just never ends. We have to be strong and we have to be vigilant, and I've been saying it for a long time."

Trump was meeting with Gentiloni as news of the incident broke.

The President again weighed in on the attack Friday morning, tweeting, "Another terrorist attack in Paris. The people of France will not take much more of this. Will have a big effect on presidential election!"

The attacker -- named by the Paris prosecutor's office as Karim Cheurfi -- killed one police officer and badly injured two others in the attack at around 9 p.m. local time on Thursday. A second man, suspected of being linked to the shooting, surrendered himself in Belgium.

The shooting has not officially been declared a terrorist act but anti-terrorist forces are leading the investigation, French President François Hollande said.

ISIS has claimed credit for the attack.</s>The attack happened just after 9 p.m. Thursday in the Champs Elysees shopping district in the heart of Paris.

A gunman armed with military style weapons walked up to a police van and opened fire.

"I saw three guys coming in a (green) Audi and shoot on the police and kill one of the police, and injure one, said Alex Fofana, an eyewitness.

"Then I had to run away. I was here working on the Champs-Elysees," he said.

A police officer was killed in the attack and two others were gravely wounded along with a woman tourist. The attacker was also killed and may have had accomplices.

ISIS claims responsibility and may have been directly involved rather than just inspiring the attack.

French authorities have not yet released the suspect's identity, but he was reportedly detained in Februrary for threatening police, then freed. Overnight, police searched his home in eastern Paris.

Here in the U.S., President Donald Trump condemned the attack.

"Our condolences from our county to the people of France," Trump said. "It looks like another terrorist attack; what can you say?"

The attack comes just days before the first round of the French elections on Sunday. Some think it might help the far right candidate, Marine Le Pen, who has taken a hard line on immigration issues.

The attack also shows the ongoing threat in France and elsewhere in Europe and it could lead to growing public pressure on governments to stop islamic terrorism.</s>Security concerns took centre stage on Friday in the last days of France’s tight presidential race as candidates defended their stance on the fight against terror in the wake of a shooting in Paris which killed one policeman.

Voters will cast ballots in the first round on Sunday of what has turned into the most unpredictable French election in memory as the gap between four frontrunners narrows. The two candidates who get the most votes will then face off in a run-off election on May 7.

A shooting on Thursday night on the Champs-Elysees shopping boulevard in central Paris, in which one policeman was killed and two others were wounded, could bring campaigning to a sombre and abrupt end, however.

The shooting unfolded on the world-famous Paris site as presidential contenders were mid-way through back-to-back television appearances to sell their campaign programmes. Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack, according to the group’s Amaq news agency.

Some of the candidates later clashed over whether official campaigning, which has just one more day to run, should be brought to a full stop in light of the incident.

“In this current context, there are no grounds to continue campaigning. We must first show our solidarity with the police,” conservative candidate Francois Fillon told the France 2 show, after saying he would cancel a trip to the Alps on Friday.

Fillon, who has sought to reinforce his credentials as a hard-liner on security, added that fighting “Islamist totalitarianism” must be the priority for the next president.

Far-left politician Jean-Luc Melenchon said the candidates should not cave in to violence.

“As we wait for more definite information, I think we need to attend to our duties as citizens: no panic, we shouldn’t interrupt our democratic process,” Melenchon said.

Pollsters see centrist Emmanuel Macron and far-right leader Marine Le Pen taking the top two places on Sunday and so going head-to-head in the run-off. That would break the normal rotation of power in France between the centre-left and centre-right.

Macron, a former banker who quit as economy minister last August to set up his independent “En Marche!” (“Onwards!”) movement, would beat Le Pen or any other candidate in the run-off, the latest polls show.

But these are so close that gaps between candidates in the first round fall within the margin of error.

Melenchon, propelled from wildcard to genuine contender thanks to feisty television performances and smart social media campaign, is virtually neck-and-neck with Fillon and only a few percentage points behind the frontrunners.

Security fears had already re-emerged in the run-up to a first ballot after an attack thought to have been targeted at some of the candidates was foiled earlier in the week. France has been hit by a series of deadly attacks since 2015.

Le Pen, who has stressed her plans to curb immigration in the last week as she tries to rally support, on Thursday night also seized on the latest incident.

“I don’t want us to get used to Islamist terrorism,” she told France 2. “We have to stop being naive. We can’t leave our children a country that is not able to defend them.”

Earlier in the evening, Macron also weighed in on the shooting, saying the president’s No.1 job was to protect people.

The election will decide the direction of France’s 2.2 trillion euro economy, which vies with Britain for the rank of fifth largest in the world. With eurospectics Le Pen and Melenchon in the race, the outcome could have a bearing on France’s place in Europe.

A Harris Interactive poll on Thursday showed Macron and Le Pen still in front, with the gap a bit wider than before. The centrist inched ahead to 24.5 percent while Le Pen was a bit weaker at 21 percent.

Fillon – an early favourite before his campaign hit the rocks following nepotism allegations that he has denied – scored 20 percent, meaning he was now gaining on Le Pen. Melenchon was stable on 19 percent.

For all the latest World News, download Indian Express App now</s>PARIS – Security concerns took center stage on Friday in the last days of France’s tight presidential race as candidates defended their stance on the fight against terror in the wake of a shooting in Paris which killed one policeman.

Voters will cast ballots in the first round on Sunday of what has turned into the most unpredictable French election in memory as the gap between four front runners narrows. The two candidates who get the most votes will then face off in a run-off election on May 7.

A shooting on Thursday night on the Champs-Elysees shopping boulevard in central Paris, in which one policeman was killed and two others were wounded, could bring campaigning to a somber and abrupt end, however.

The shooting unfolded on the world-famous Paris site as presidential contenders were mid-way through back-to-back television appearances to sell their campaign programs. Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack, according to the group’s Amaq news agency.

Some of the candidates later clashed over whether official campaigning, which has just one more day to run, should be brought to a full stop in light of the incident.

“In this current context, there are no grounds to continue campaigning. We must first show our solidarity with the police,” conservative candidate Francois Fillon told the France 2 show, after saying he would cancel a trip to the Alps on Friday.

Fillon, who has sought to reinforce his credentials as a hard-liner on security, added that fighting “Islamist totalitarianism” must be the priority for the next president.

Far-left politician Jean-Luc Melenchon said the candidates should not cave in to violence.

“As we wait for more definite information, I think we need to attend to our duties as citizens: no panic, we shouldn’t interrupt our democratic process,” Melenchon said.

Pollsters see centrist Emmanuel Macron and far-right leader Marine Le Pen taking the top two places on Sunday and so going head-to-head in the run-off. That would break the normal rotation of power in France between the center-left and center-right.

Macron, a former banker who quit as economy minister last August to set up his independent “En Marche!” (“Onwards!”) movement, would beat Le Pen or any other candidate in the run-off, the latest polls show.

But these are so close that gaps between candidates in the first round fall within the margin of error.

Melenchon, propelled from wildcard to genuine contender thanks to feisty television performances and smart social media campaign, is virtually neck-and-neck with Fillon and only a few percentage points behind the frontrunners.

Security fears had already re-emerged in the run-up to a first ballot after an attack thought to have been targeted at some of the candidates was foiled earlier in the week. France has been hit by a series of deadly attacks since 2015.

Le Pen, who has stressed her plans to curb immigration in the last week as she tries to rally support, on Thursday night also seized on the latest incident.

“I don’t want us to get used to Islamist terrorism,” she told France 2. “We have to stop being naive. We can’t leave our children a country that is not able to defend them.”

Earlier in the evening, Macron also weighed in on the shooting, saying the president’s No.1 job was to protect people.

The election will decide the direction of France’s 2.2 trillion euro economy, which vies with Britain for the rank of fifth largest in the world. With eurospectics Le Pen and Melenchon in the race, the outcome could have a bearing on France’s place in Europe.

A Harris Interactive poll on Thursday showed Macron and Le Pen still in front, with the gap a bit wider than before. The centrist inched ahead to 24.5 percent while Le Pen was a bit weaker at 21 percent.

Fillon – an early favorite before his campaign hit the rocks following nepotism allegations that he has denied – scored 20 percent, meaning he was now gaining on Le Pen. Melenchon was stable on 19 percent.</s>President Donald Trump addressed what he called a likely terrorist attack in Paris on Thursday, offering condolences to France while lamenting that the types of attack seem to have no end.

"First of all, our condolences from our country to the people of France," Trump said during a news conference with Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni.

"Again, it's happening, it seems, I just saw this, I was walking in, so it's a terrible thing. It's a very, very terrible thing that's going on in the world today, but it looks like another terrorist attack and what can you say? It just never ends. We have to be strong and we have to be vigilant and I've been saying it for a long time."

A policeman was killed and another was injured in the shooting incident in Paris on Thursday. Local police are treating it as a terrorist attack.

The attacker, who has been killed, was targeting police near the Franklin Roosevelt subway station.

The incident occurred on Champs Elysees, and authorities have closed off the avenue.

As president, Trump has emphasized the importance of defeating terrorists in the Middle East. He also thanked Gentiloni, whom he met at the White House on Thursday, for his country's efforts to contain ISIS in the Mediterranean.</s>French police have said tonight's attack was 'probably a terrorist act', and if so it would be at least the sixth terror strike on Paris in three years.

Most recently, on March 18, a convicted criminal with links to radical Islam shouted 'I am here to die for Allah, there will be deaths' seconds before he was shot dead during an attack at Orly airport.

And a month earlier, on February 3, a man was shot five times outside the Louvre museum in the heart of Paris after attempting to storm the historic art gallery.

Last year, on June 13, two police officers were murdered in their home just outside Paris in front of their 8-year-old son in an attack claimed by Islamic State.

By far the most deadly strike came on November 13, 2015, when ISIS militants killed 130 people in France's worst atrocity since World War II.

A series of suicide bomb and shooting attacks were launched on crowded sites in central Paris, as well as the northern suburb of Saint-Denis.

The majority of those killed were in the Bataclan concert hall where hostages were taken.

Islamic State extremists claimed responsibility and said it was in retaliation for French participation in airstrikes on the militant group's positions in Syria and Iraq.

It led to the declaration of a state of emergency in France with police powers greatly expanded.

And on January 7, two brothers killed 11 people inside the Paris building housing the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in revenge for the publication of cartoons mocking the Prophet Muhammed.

More were killed subsequently in attacks on a kosher market in eastern Paris and on police. There were 17 victims in all, including two police officers. The attackers were killed.

The shooting on March 20 comes just two days after the arrest of two men found with a cache of weapons and explosives in Marseilles.

They were suspected of preparing an attack to disrupt the first round of the presidential election on Sunday.</s>President Donald Trump says on Friday’s fatal shooting in Paris “looks like another terrorist attack.” Paris police say a gunman has killed a police officer and wounded another before being killed himself in an attack on the Champs-Elysees shopping district.

It was unclear how Trump concluded that terrorism may have been a factor. Paris police have yet to announce a motive, Trump is also offering condolences from the US to the people of France.

He calls the attack a “terrible thing” and says “it never ends.” He says people must be strong and vigilant. The attack came three days before the first round of balloting in France’s presidential election.

For all the latest World News, download Indian Express App now</s>A gunman killed one police officer and wounded another before he was himself shot dead in what police are saying is probably a terrorist attack in the heart of Paris. The attack came days before the first round of the French presidential election.

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Yesterday's terrorist attack in Paris disrupts campaigning for the elections.