At least a dozen people were injured last night after a man armed with a Kalashnikov rifle threw a grenade into a packed bar in the French Alpine city of Grenoble.
Following the explosion, which occurred at around 8pm on Wednesday, it was reported that six of the injured were in a 'critical' condition and one was wounded in the chest.
All the windows of the “Akşehir” bar in the Olympic Village area of Grenoble were blown out in an attack that was undoubtedly planned.
'The incident took place late on Wednesday night in Claude Kogan Square,' said local council official Chloé Pantel.
Speaking from the scene, Pantel said: 'This was a criminal act, most likely a grenade.'
Grenoble deputy prosecutor François Touret de Coucy also confirmed the theory, saying that "the explosion was caused by a hand grenade thrown by someone."
Mr Coucy said the bar was in a socially deprived area frequented by several drug gangs and that a man was seen holding an unfired Kalashnikov rifle.
Touret de Coucy said there was no theory yet for the attack, but that terrorism was not a priority. He did not identify any of the victims.
