Bomb Explodes in Post Office at City Hall in Paris; 1 Killed

A bomb exploded in the post office on the ground floor of the Paris City Hall today, killing one person and injuring an undetermined number, police said.

The windows in the ground-floor post office were blown out. Glass was strewn across the square in front of the building.

Initial reports by an unidentified City Hall official who said the facade of the ornate building was completely blown out proved incorrect.

Reporters were not immediately allowed inside, where damage was said to be very heavy.

Swiss tourist Monique Faber was in the post office’s basement when the blast occurred. “I was in a telephone booth, and then everything went pop,” she said. “I didn’t see much there was so much dust around.”

Police Chief Jean Paolini said the bomb had been placed “on or under a bench in the post office” on the ground floor of City Hall.

A fire department spokesman said three people were seriously injured and a dozen others suffered lesser wounds.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the bombing, which occurred about 7 p.m.

Premier Jacques Chirac, who also is mayor of the capital, interrupted a meeting of his internal security council at the premier’s office to go to the scene of the explosion. With him was Robert Pandraud, deputy minister for security.

The city hall is a block-long building in central Paris, across the Seine River from Notre Dame Cathedral.