A knife attacker has been shot by police after injuring six people in an unprovoked attack in Paris’s busy Gare du Nord train station, the French interior minister has said.

Gerald Darmanin told reporters at the scene that the man had attacked several people, including a police officer, with a “bladed weapon” at around 6.43am local time (5.43am GMT).

He said the unnamed assailant was currently “between life and death” in hospital. French media reported that the attacker had been shot in the chest.

Several passengers and a border police officer were among the wounded, according to officials.

The officer was stabbed in the back by the assailant, but was saved by a bulletproof vest, Mr Darmanin said.

Another of the other victims was seriously injured in the shoulder and taken for emergency treatment.

Mr Darmanin thanked the police “for their effective and courageous reaction”.

Video of the Gare du Nord, one of the French capital’s busiest commuter stations, showed an eerie calm with dozens of police stationed by the Eurostar terminal entrance in areas cordoned off from the public.

No specific motive, including terrorism, has currently been suggested by authorities.

The commotion also caused serious disruptions to train services at the station – Europe’s busiest rail artery – in the early morning rush hour, according to the national railway company SNCF.