French media reported on Monday that an explosion was heard near the Russian consulate in Marseille and that fire engines were rushing to the scene.

Reuters quoted the Russian consul general in Marseille, Stanislav Uransky, as saying that the explosion occurred inside the consulate. The Russian Foreign Ministry said the explosion at its consulate in Marseille had all the hallmarks of a ‘terrorist attack’.

The explosion coincided with the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

According to TASS, the Russian Foreign Ministry called on the French authorities to take full measures to investigate the explosion.

The incident occurred at around 8am local time, TASS added. About 30 firefighters were at the scene.