The Louvre is closed today, according to a statement on the museum’s website, after a French soldier shot and wounded a machete-wielding man who attacked security forces outside the museum at around 10 a.m. local time.
According to the Washington Post, the attacker was armed with at least one machete and attempting to carry two briefcases into the Carrousel du Louvre, the museum’s shopping center. When security officials refused the man entry, the man allegedly pulled out a knife and attacked a soldier, who then opened fire.
The Local fr reports that French Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve has called the attack "terrorist in nature." One soldier was lightly injured, while the attacker remains in serious condition but alive. Hundreds of tourists were confined to secure areas of the museum at the time of the attack.
Local Parisians interviewed by USA Today said that the incident brought back memories of the November 2015 terrorist attacks that killed 130 people across the city.
"When the story broke at first, I said crap, it's happening again, but then I saw it was quickly under control," Jean Leroux, 29, an artist in Paris, told USA Today. "In the end I saw it was a minor isolated act, and I thought it's not like at the Bataclan.”
The November 2015 attacks led to a 12.8 decline in visitation to Paris over the 2016 winter holidays, according to a November 2016 study by Allianz Global Assistance. While the city saw a moderate increase in booking interest over summer 2016, the city fell from 80,214 travelers in the 2015 winter holiday season to 69,975 in 2016. Instead, travelers opted to visited more off-the-beaten-path cities in Europe like Amsterdam, Netherlands, (up 30.8 percent); Lisbon, Portugal (up 29.0 percent); Venice, Italy (up 19.6 percent); Vienna, Austria (up 17.5 percent); Munich, Germany (up 16.5 percent); and Budapest, Hungary (up 16.1 percent), according to the study.
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