An explosion in Monaco on Monday evening injured three people and prompted a police search for a man suspected of detonating a makeshift bomb. The blast occurred in a residential building near the border with France, according to French media reports.
Details of the explosion
The French newspaper Le Figaro reported that video surveillance images captured a man dropping a backpack at the entrance of a residential building shortly before the explosion. The Monaco public prosecutor general, Thibault Stéphane, told the outlet that two of the victims were in critical condition. The paper also reported the victims were Ukrainian.
Éric Ciotti, the rightwing mayor of nearby Nice, France, said on X: “The attack committed this evening is a tragedy for Monaco.” BFM TV described the explosive device as a “parcel bomb,” citing the principality’s prosecutor general.
Suspect and investigation
Police investigating said the suspect was caught on CCTV cameras putting a backpack down before fleeing the scene on foot, heading toward the French border. The explosion struck about 9:00 pm local time (8pm BST) in a residential building on a street along the border with France.
Thibault said a suspect had left a bag or package in the building’s lobby before leaving. Nothing appeared for the moment to indicate why the building may have been targeted, he added.
Victims and impact
A couple in their 50s or 60s, injured in the blast, were in life-threatening conditions, while a 13-year-old who was “very likely related to the couple” suffered less serious injuries, said Christophe Mirmand, the minister of state, without disclosing their nationality. The explosive device apparently contained bolts and buckshot, Mirmand said, adding that police were investigating the incident.
“This is the first time in history, to my knowledge, that such an act has taken place in the principality,” he said. Monaco is a tax-free microstate on the French Riviera known as a haven for billionaires and their luxury yachts.
