A KNIFE attacker who killed two women at Marseille's main railway station shouted "Allahu akbar", Arabic for "God is great", according to witnesses cited by France's Minister of the Interior.
Gerard Collomb, who said authorities do not know if the attack was a terrorist incident, said police have video of yesterday's attack at Saint Charles station.
He said it showed a man attacking one woman, running away, then coming back and attacking a second woman.
He was later shot dead by soldiers.
Both women died of their wounds.
The minister said the assailant ran toward soldiers who were rushing to the scene and was shot just outside the station.
Police in Marseille were interviewing about 10 witnesses to the attacks.
Mr Collomb declined to provide any details about the suspect or to identify the victims.
One woman was stabbed to death and the other woman's throat was slit, sources sad.
The assailant was shot dead by soldiers who had been patrolling inside the station.
France's president Emmanuel Macron said he was "deeply outraged" by the "barbarous" knife attack.
Mr Macron also paid tribute to the French soldiers assigned to domestic security who the president said responded with cool heads and efficiency.
The French government this month decided to maintain the military force of 7,000 soldiers that was created to protect sensitive sites after the deadly extremist attacks of 2015.
Mr Macron's prime minister Edouard Philippe also praised the soldiers who shot the suspect and stopped the "killing frenzy".
He expressed condolences to the victims' families and concern for Marseille residents.
