Fears of a wave of lone wolf attacks in France have intensified after a man rammed his van into a crowded Christmas market in Nantes before attempting to stab himself to death, The Telegraph reported.
At least 11 people were injured, with five including the driver suffering serious injuries, following the incident in the western French city's main square, place Royale.
François Hollande, the French president, called an emergency cabinet meeting on Tuesday to discuss how to "mobilise the services of state" against any further incidents after three lone attacks in three days.
On Dec.21, another driver ploughed into Christmas shoppers in the shouting "Allahu akbar" (God is Great) in the eastern city of Dijon, injuring 13 people, two seriously. A day earlier, a French convert to Islam was shot dead after attacking three police officers with a knife while also reportedly crying "Allahu akbar" in the central town of Joue-les-Tours.
Manuel Valls, the French prime minister, said: "This succession of tragedies worries us all." But he called on the French to "keep their sang froid" and not to jump to hasty conclusions as to the motives in each case.
In Nantes, the driver of the white Peugeot van rammed into a stand serving hot wine in front of which several people were gathered and then stabbed himself several times in the chest with a knife, according to reports. He was in a stable condition in hospital last night.
Police dismissed initial suggestions that the driver, thought to be in his thirties, had shouted God is Great, saying they found a notebook in his vehicle with "incoherent, suicidal phrases".
"As things stand, we can't talk about an act of terrorism," Brigitte Lamy, the local prosecutor said. "This appears to be an isolated case," she said, adding that he had "made no particular demands".
While the perperator of Dec.20's knife assault on three policemen had been radicalised, officials said the incident in Dijon was "absolutely not a terrorist attack", and that the driver suffered from a "long-lasting and severe psychological disorder".
However, Mr Hollande yesterday called on authorities to exercise the "utmost vigilance".
Mr Valls, meanwhile, warned: "Never have we known such a grave danger from terrorism."
"What worries us is the phenomena of very quick, deep radicalisation," he added, pointing that around 1,000 French nationals had left to fight jihad in Syria and Iraq.