IMF letter bomb, school shooting set France on terror alert

A secretary in the IMF office suffered the brunt of the letter bomb explosion Later in the day a 17-year-old student opened fire in a school in southern France

According to news reports a secretary in the International Monetary Fund Office building near the Arc de Triomphe monument,  opened an envelope and was injured as the letter exploded. She was hit in the face by shrapnel and hurt in the eardrum because of a "rather violent noise", the chief of police said.

Several people were evacuated from the building 'as a precaution', a police source said. The IMF building is right next to the World Bank building and police have now cordoned off the area as they are looking for the suspects.

In hindsight, the report talks of police chief Michel Cadot mentioning a threatening phone call that came to the IMF a few days ago, but no connections are being drawn at this point.

The Police chief has revealed that it was some kind of homemade explosive.

France remains in a state of emergency after a string of deadly Islamic extremist attacks over the past two years.

Incidentally, this kind of scare is taking place just six weeks before France prepares itself for a Presidential election. Earlier in the  week the German finance minister was also sent a suspicious package containing explosives similar to those used in fireworks. It was destroyed in a controlled explosion by explosives experts.

Then later in the day, according to report in the , a 17-year-old student opened fire in a school in southern France. A head teacher and another individual are said to have been injured after the gun-toting student opened fire at the Alexis de Tocqueville School in Grasse.