IMF employee hurt in Paris letter bomb attack

By Hajer M'tiri

PARIS

One person was hurt on Thursday when a letter bomb exploded at the offices of the IMF in a wealthy Paris neighborhood, according to police.

The explosion came from "a small envelope" and the person who opened it was "slightly injured," a Paris police spokesperson told broadcaster BFMTV.

The IMF employee who opened the mail at around 11.30 a.m. local time (1030GMT) suffered "minor burns," according to police.

Police said the injured employee was taken to hospital and an investigation has been launched.

Around 150 people were evacuated from the building as a precautionary measure while a sweep was made of the building.

IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde condemned the blast as “a cowardly act of violence”.

“I reaffirm the IMF’s resolve to continue our work in line with our mandate. We are working closely with the French authorities to investigate this incident and ensure the safety of our staff,” she added.

President Francois Hollande, who is on a visit to the south of France near Toulon, described the incident "an attack".

"We are again confronted with an attack. There is no other word for it when you are confronted with a package bomb," he told reporters.

The incident comes one day after a parcel bomb was found at the office of the German finance minister in Berlin and just six weeks before the two-round French presidential election.