A man has been shot dead after trying to seize the weapon of a soldier guarding Orly Airport in Paris, police said.

The soldier is part of the Sentinel special force deployed around France to protect sensitive sites after a string of deadly Islamic extremist attacks.

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Police evacuated part of the airport and warned visitors in a tweet to avoid the airport while the police operation was under way.

The shooting on Saturday morning came after a similar incident last month at the Louvre Museum. France remains under a state of emergency.

Emergency vehicles surrounded the airport as confused passengers gathered in car parking areas, and the elite RAID police force worked to secure the site.

A national police official said it is unclear whether the attacker acted alone. No information about the dead man or any other injuries was available.

The Sentinel force includes 7,500 soldiers, half deployed in the Paris region and half in the provinces.

Orly is Paris's second-biggest airport behind Charles de Gaulle, serving domestic and international flights, notably to destinations in Europe and Africa.