Otte personer er sårede efter at to mænd begyndte at skyde ind i en menneskemængde, der var ved at forlade en moskè i Avignon i det sydlige Frankrig sent søndag aften.

Worshippers leaving the Arrahma mosque in Avignon were approached by two hooded suspects at about 22:30 local time (21:30 GMT) on Sunday.

The suspects, carrying a handgun and a shotgun, arrived in a Renault Clio before opening fire on the crowd, La Provence newspaper reports.

Politiet insisterer på, at det ikke er et terrorangreb.

Four people were wounded outside the mosque and a family of four – including a seven-year-old girl – also suffered injuries from shrapnel while in their apartment, located some 50 metres away, La Provence said, citing a source.

Two of the eight wounded were hospitalised, according to the source, who also said that worshippers leaving the mosque had not been the intended target.

The Avignon attack is not being treated as a terrorist incident, the prosecutor’s office said. Laure Chabaud, a district magistrate, said that the incident was likely to be the result of a dispute between youths.

On Thursday, a man was arrested after trying to drive a car into a crowd in front of a mosque in the Paris suburb of Creteil. No-one was injured in the incident.

Frankrig er i undtagelsestilstand efter en række terrorangreb de seneste år, det seneste med dødelig udgang var i april, da en politimand blev dræbt.

BBC: Avignon shooting: Eight injured near French mosque