Four police officers have been reported killed in a knife attack by a worker inside the Paris police headquarters, French media said.
The attacker was also shot dead after killing officers with a ceramic knife in the historic centre of Paris, according to DailyMail.
The report said there were five casualties including the attacker who was shot dead in the courtyard.
Reports suggested the attacker was a civilian worker at the Intelligence Directorate of the Prefecture of Police.
The motives of the attack are not yet known.
Police union official Loic Travers told French TV station BFM TV: ‘As we speak, one colleague is dead following a knife attack.
‘Another colleague is in a state of shock (…) and the person behind the attack has been shot by another colleague.’
Union official Yves Lefebvre said the attack happened around 1 pm at the headquarters located just across the street from Notre Dame Cathedral.
The premises were cordoned off around lunchtime, and emergency services were quickly at the scene.
The metro station of Cité, near the headquarters of the Paris Police, has now been shut down.
French Interior Minister Christophe Castaner is heading to the scene, French channel BFM TV reported.
