AN EMPLOYEE AT the Paris offices of the International Monetary Fund has been injured in the hands and face after opening a letter which exploded, police said.
“A little before midday this morning at the French IMF delegation, a parcel that was delivered to the secretariat of the IMF representative in France exploded at the moment when the secretary proceeded to the opening of this package,” said the prefect of the IMF, Paris Michel Cadot according to the French newspaper Le Monde.
Several people were then evacuated from the building near the Arc de Triomphe monument as a precaution.
The head of the IMF, managing director Christine Lagarde to the attack, saying “my compassion goes to [my] colleagues there”.
She went on to condemn the attack as a “cowardly act of violence” and reaffirmed “the IMF’s resolve to continue our mandate”.
Lagarde will be working closely with French authorities to investigate the incident.
The IMF (International Monetary Fund) Europe Office is located close to the Champs Elysees in the French capital.
The incident comes just six weeks before a presidential election.
Linked attacks
Although no link has been established at this stage, a Greek far-left group claimed today that it had sent a parcel bomb to the German finance ministry in Berlin, more than six years after waging a similar campaign against European officials.
“We claim responsibility for sending a booby-trapped parcel to the German finance minister,” the Conspiracy of Fire Nuclei group said in a statement posted on an anti-establishment website.
German police said yesterday that they had discovered the “explosive” package at Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble’s office building, a day before he was due to host his new US counterpart Steven Mnuchin.
-With reporting from Gráinne Ní Aodha
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