A man driving a van ploughed into a crowd strolling through a Christmas market in Nantes in western France on Monday evening, injuring 10 people.
Five people suffered serious injuries, including the driver, a local official said.
According to the Ouest France newspaper, citing a police officer and witnesses on the scene, the driver of the white van shouted “Allahu Akbar” (“God is great” in Arabic) and then stabbed himself with a knife.
The Christmas market was evacuated and secured by police, a witness told Reuters.
The incident came a day after a driver said to be shouting “God is great” slammed into crowds in the French city of Dijon, injuring at least 11 people.
Interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve was to visit Dijon today. A 40-year-old man was arrested over that attack.
The Islamic State (IS) group and other terrorist organisations have repeatedly called for attacks against France, notably because of the military's participation in US-led air strikes in Iraq.
A weekend knife attack on police in another French town is also being investigated by anti-terror officers.
Reuters