A French charity official was reportedly stabbed by a couple shouting 'Allahu Akbar'

Special intervention French gendarmes and police arrive at the scene of an operation in Paris, France, May 26, 2016. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier

Thomson Reuters

PARIS (Reuters) - French police opened an investigation on Friday after a director at the French Restos du Coeur charity said he had been stabbed earlier in the day by a couple shouting "Allahu Akbar," French radio Europe 1 said.

A police source confirmed the director of the Restos du Coeur soup kitchen in Montreuil, east of Paris, had said he was stabbed by a couple carrying an ax and a knife and shouting 'God is Greatest' in Arabic.

The man was sent to hospital, the police source told Reuters. It was not immediately clear how serious his injuries were.

France has been beset by several high profile attacks claimed by Islamist militants over the 18 months. In June, a Frenchman who pledged allegiance to Islamic State stabbed a police commander to death outside his home and also killed his partner.

The country has been under a state of emergency since Islamic State gunmen and bombers killed 130 people in Paris last November.

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