Man Shot Dead In Paris Carried Islamic State Flag

French police use a bomb-disposal robot to inspect the body of a man shot dead outside a police station in Paris.

French prosecutors say they are opening a terrorism investigation after police killed a man who was apparently trying to attack a police station in Paris.

Paris prosecutor Francois Molins said on January 7 that the man's body was found with a sheet of paper showing the Islamic State flag and a claim of responsibility written in Arabic.

Officials earlier said the man shouted "Allahu akbar" (God is great) outside the police station where officers shot him dead, and that he was wielding a butcher's knife and wearing a fake suicide vest.

Reports say the man was born in Morocco and his fingerprints matched those on file for a convicted thief.

The incident took place on the anniversary of last year's Islamist militant attacks in Paris and its surrounding areas.

Three gunmen and 17 other people were killed in the tragedy, which began with a massacre at the offices of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.

Based on reporting by AFP and AP