Man rams car into pedestrians in France, wounding 10, says prosecutor

A 35-year-old man on Wednesday (November 5, 2025) rammed his car into pedestrians and cyclists on the French Atlantic island of Oleron, wounding 10 people, including four seriously, a prosecutor said.

The Oleron resident “deliberately hit several pedestrians and cyclists” along a main road on the scenic island off the western city of La Rochelle, prosecutor Arnaud Laraize said.

Police used a taser to arrest the suspect as he attempted to set fire to his car, a source following the case said, asking not to be named as they were not authorised to speak to the press.

When arrested, the man cried “God is the greatest” in Arabic, the prosecutor said. The expression is a key refrain in Islam, but also used by militants carrying out attacks.

The man’s motive was not immediately clear, Mr. Laraize added, saying he was being investigated for alleged “attempted murder”.

He was already known to the police for petty crimes, and investigators had not dismissed the possibility he had a psychiatric disorder.

A second source following the case earlier said the man had “deliberately hit” the victims on different stretches of the road.

The prosecutor said the incidents occurred on a road between Dolus d’Oleron and Saint-Pierre d’Oleron .The mayor of Dolus d’Oleron confirmed the suspect was a resident.

Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said he was heading to the area and would speak to the press later Wednesday (November 5, 2025).

France has been rocked by a series of jihadist attacks in recent years.

In 2016, a Tunisian man ploughed a 19-tonne truck into crowds in the southern city of Nice, killing 86 people. The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attack.

France will next week mark a decade since the attack on the Bataclan concert hall and other locations in Paris, which were also claimed by IS and killed 130 people.