International- A gunman opened fire in central Paris Friday, killing three people and injuring three others.
- The shooting suspect was accused of attacking migrants in Paris with a sword last year, according to reports.
The suspect in a deadly shooting in Paris had previously been accused of attacking migrants in the city with a sword last year, French authorities said.
French authorities allege a 69-year-old shooting suspect opened fire at a Kurdish community center in central Paris on Friday, killing three people and injuring three others. The BBC reported he was arrested quickly.
Last December, the suspect was accused of attacking migrants sleeping in tents with a sword in the Bercy area of Paris, Le Monde reported. He was serving jail time for the attack but was recently released on bail, the BBC reported, citing authorities.
According to The BBC, it is unclear why the man was set free. He was released on December 12 and was under judicial supervision, meaning he wasn't allowed to leave the area or have a weapon, according to Le Parisien.
Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo tweeted that the attack was carried out by "an extreme right-wing activist." While the motive for the shooting remains unclear, the deadly incident is being investigated as racially motivated, police said.
"As for a racist motive for this case, this will obviously form part of our investigations which are starting now," Paris Prosecutor Laure Beccuau said, according to Le Monde.
Le Parisien reported that the suspect told police he "did not like Kurds" when he was arrested on Friday.
The Kurdish Democratic Council in France, which runs the community center, condemned the attack in a statement and called for a vigil near the shooting site to honor the victims.
By Friday evening, French police announced they would increase security in Kurdish areas of Paris as protests broke out and demonstrators clashed with the city's riot police.