A woman has been killed after a man burst into a retirement home for African missionaries near Montpellier in southern France.
A woman has been killed after a man burst into a retirement home for African missionaries near Montpellier in southern France.
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Police say he was wearing a mask and armed with a knife and a sawn-off shotgun. He tied the woman up before stabbing her at the “Chênes verts” (“Green Oaks”) home in Montferrier-sur-Lez.
The reason for the attack is not known. Police have said there is no evidence of a terrorist motive at this stage. According to the AFP news agency, the woman worked at the home.
Around 60 residents were taken to safety. The attacker is still at large. A large security perimeter has been put into place around the home and special police units are on site.
The home is a residence for people from the Society of African Missions (SMA), a community of European, African and Asian Catholic missionaries which has around 1,000 members.
The home itself houses around 60 former missionaries as well as six or seven lay members and a similar number of nuns.
Hooded attacker kills woman in French missionaries' retirement home https://t.co/pYwUQFgGBk pic.twitter.com/lRtDAH39OK
— AFP news agency (@AFP) November 25, 2016