Tourists strolling along the famous Champs-ö?lysö?es in Paris on Monday afternoon, watched in horror as the car crashed into a police van. Authorities said an armed driver deliberately crashed into a police car, the offender died.

"We were waiting to cross the street and suddenly heard an explosion, the car was on fire," said Eugenio Morsella who made the video after the collision. "The police acted very quickly." This is the last of a series of terrorist attacks this year against the security forces in the French capital. The Paris Prosecutor's office opened a terrorism investigation. "Again, the security forces of France have been focused on the attempted attack on the Champs Elysees" - said to journalists the Minister of internal Affairs Gerard Colomb.

According to CNN-affiliate BFMTV that the driver was under the so-called "S Fiche", a French watch list of terrorism/radicalization, consisting of thousands of names, some of which are under active observation. Active surveillance means that they are on the radar of law enforcement, not necessarily under strict supervision.

"This shows once again that the threat level in France is extremely high," - said the Minister of internal Affairs.
sections: World News, Accidents, Accidents