French police were hunting a man who had appeared to drive his car at a group of soldiers jogging outside their base in the foothills of the Alps on Thursday
It was not clear if the driver had sought to run down the 10-strong group from the 93rd Mountain Artillery regiment or simply scare them
The incident caused alarm in a country on edge after an Islamic State loyalist went on a rampage in southern France last Friday
killing four people in the first militant attack since President Emmanuel Macron lifted a state of emergency
"We don't know if it was an involuntary action
or a deliberate gesture," the spokesman said
which took place in Varces-Allieres-et-Risset
The mayor said school children were being kept indoors while the driver remained at large
A source close to the investigation said the driver's motivations were unclear
but that the incident was being taken seriously
Macron on Wednesday said France was locked in a fight against "clandestine Islamic fundamentalism" as he paid tribute to the gendarme who took the place of a hostage in Friday's attack in Trebes and was killed by the Moroccan-born assailant
please register for free or log in to your account.