One hurt in letter bomb blast at IMF´s Paris office

PARIS: An employee at the Paris offices of the International Monetary Fund suffered injuries to her hands and face after opening a letter which exploded on Thursday, police said.

Several people were evacuated from the building near the Arc de Triomphe monument "as a precaution", a police source said.

Although no link has been established at this stage, a Greek far-left group claimed Thursday that it had sent a parcel bomb to the German finance ministry in Berlin, more than six years after waging a similar campaign against European officials.

"We claim responsibility for sending a booby-trapped parcel to the German finance minister," the Conspiracy of Fire Nuclei group said in a statement posted on an anti-establishment website.

German police said Wednesday that they had discovered the "explosive" package at Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble´s office building, a day before he was due to host his new US counterpart Steven Mnuchin.

´Cowardly Act´

International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde on Thursday condemned the letter bomb of the fund office in Paris as a "cowardly act."

"I condemn this cowardly act of violence and reaffirm the IMF´s resolve to continue our work in line with our mandate," Lagarde said in a statement from Frankfurt, where she is attending a conference ahead of the Group of 20 finance ministers meeting in Baden-Baden.

One IMF staff member was injured in the explosion.

Lagarde said the fund is "working closely with the French authorities to investigate this incident and ensure the safety of our staff."