Protests in Paris after racist shooting kills one in Trappes and La Verrière

French anti-terror prosecutors have opened an investigation into an apparently racially motivated attack in the towns of Trappes and La Verrière, southwest of Paris, that left one man dead and four others seriously injured, including an 11-year-old girl.

A 39-year-old French national opened fire on passers-by on Friday, apparently targeting Black and Arab people. The victim was identified as 26-year-old Pengo Bossio Wangi, a French national with Congolese roots.

The National Anti-Terror Prosecutor's Office said it had taken over the case because the attack appeared to have been planned and was motivated by targeting people of, in its words, a specific ethnicity, nation or religion. President Emmanuel Macron travelled to Trappes immediately after the attack and described it as a "terrorist and racist attack."

On Monday, anti-terror prosecutor Olivier Christen updated the public on the state of the inquiry.

Crowds gathered in northeastern Paris in the days following the shootings, some holding placards reading "Racism kills." Trappes mayor Ali Rabeh placed political responsibility squarely on Rassemblement National leader Jordan Bardella, saying Bardella had repeatedly described Trappes as "no longer France," called it a "small-scale Islamist republic" and claimed it was "Kabul 30 minutes from Paris" — rhetoric Rabeh said had made the entire population of Trappes a target.

Several demonstrators pointed to right-wing broadcaster CNews, accusing it of amplifying racist rhetoric without challenge. Others said the Macron government bore responsibility for allowing such discourse to spread.