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Terrorism probe opened after suspected parcel bomb in Lyon injures eight people

At least eight people have been injured in an explosion in the French city of Lyon, according to the regional authority. The prosecutor's office said a suspected parcel bomb was the cause of the explosion. None of the injuries are life-threatening, it added. The Paris counter-terrorism prosecutor has opened a probe into the blast. "My customers that told me that it was a person on a bike that was wearing a balaclava," a local shop worker told Euronews. "He threw a bag inside the shop just next to me and it exploded. Luckily no one was killed," she added. "I was a block away and I heard it. They locked us in the store. I came out 10 minutes later and the police etc were arriving," Canadian travel writer Kathy Buckworth told Euronews. The explosion was "like a bomb, extremely loud," she said. The incident occurred around 17h40 CEST on Friday, according to the French interior minister. The explosion took place in the second arrondissement of Lyon on the angle where Rue Victor Hugo meets Rue Sala in a busy shopping area. Minister of the Interior Christophe Castaner ‏said he had sent instructions to all prefectures to reinforce security at the public sites hosting sporting or cultural events. French President Emmanuel Macron described it as an "attack" with no fatalities.