2 women stabbed to death in France, attacker killed

Two women were killed on Sunday at the main railway station in the southern French city of Marseille, in a likely terrorist knife assault, French media reported.

According to national TV network BFMTV, at 13:45 local time (1145 GMT), a man armed with two knives slaughtered a woman and stabbed to death a second one.

The man also tried to attack French security force members who were patrolling the area before being shot and seriously wounded. He succumbed to his wounds in the scene, it added.

The anti-terror prosecutor opened an inquiry on charges of "assassination in connection with a terrorist enterprise" and "attempted murder against a person holding public authority in relation to a terrorist enterprise".

French Interior Minister Gerard Collomb said on his tweeter account he would "immediately" go to the attack site.

The Gare Saint Charles, Marseille's main railway station, was evacuated after police sealed off the zone. Footage showed police operation is still underway.

Risks of terror attacks remain high in France where emergency security laws have been imposed since 2015, after about 130 people were killed and 350 others were injured in a series of explosions and shootings claimed by the Islamic State.