According to police and prosecutors, a man who entered the Iranian consulate in Paris on Friday and claimed to be carrying an explosive vest was taken into custody by French authorities.
After the event, the man turned himself in to the authorities, and no weapons or explosives were discovered on him or the property.
The Paris prosecutor’s office stated that the guy, who was born in Iran in 1963, had already been found guilty of setting fire to tires in front of the Iranian embassy in Paris in 2023.
The unnamed suspect appeared to have “threatened violent action” inside, so police detained him when he left on his own initiative. Yet as of right now, “no explosive materials have been observed at this stage,” in the building, in his car, or on him.
Three simulated grenades were inside the vest that he was carrying, according to a police source who wished to remain anonymous.
The consulate summoned law enforcement after a witness observed “a man enter carrying a grenade or an explosive belt,” according to police, who previously spoke with AFP.
According to an AFP correspondent, there was a strong police presence and the entire neighborhood surrounding the embassy in the 16th area of the capital was cordoned off.
Two metro lines that pass near the consulate saw a temporary suspension of traffic, according to RATP, the Paris transportation organization.
Iran’s consulate and embassy are housed in the same structure in the French capital, but they have two distinct entrances on opposite streets.
At the time of the occurrence, Middle East tensions were high due to Israel’s suspected midnight strike on central Iran. However, no suggestion of a connection was made.
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