Driver Injures 11 After Ramming His Car Into Pedestrians In Dijon

The man reportedly shouted “Allahu Akbar” (God is great) while driving his car at people.

A man has been arrested in Dijon, France, after driving his car into crowds of people in the city on Sunday night.

ARNAUD FINISTRE/AFP / Getty Images

At least 11 people are believed to have been injured, two of them seriously, Sky News reported.

BBC News said French media claimed the man shouted “Allahu Akbar” (God is great) while driving his car at pedestrians in five different areas of the city during a half-hour period.

ARNAUD FINISTRE/AFP / Getty Images

The day before, police shot a man dead in a town near Tours after he tried to stab officers at a police station.

The Guardian reported that he too shouted “Allahu Akbar” while he wielded the knife. Three officers were injured.

France’s interior minister, Bernard Cazeneuve, later claimed the man, a Muslim convert from Burundi, had been "very unstable", the BBC reported.

The driver in Dijon has been described as a 40-year-old who until last month was receiving psychiatric treatment, The Guardian said.

ARNAUD FINISTRE/AFP / Getty Images

Sky News reported witnesses told police he had been heard claiming he was “acting for the children of Palestine”.

French prime minister Manuel Valls has expressed solidarity with the victims in Dijon.

Manuel Valls @manuelvalls

Solidarité à l'égard des victimes de Dijon et soutien aux familles. MV

Sun Dec 21 21:29:51 UTC+0000 2014

Anti-terrorism officers are now investigating Saturday’s knife attack.

ARNAUD FINISTRE/AFP / Getty Images

Sky News reported that the interior ministry said it was too early to tell if the two incidents are related.