A 25-year-old Irishwoman was attacked by three men with a motorcycle chain lock in front of the building where she was staying in central Avignon, southern France at the weekend.
The victim was badly injured on the mouth, cheeks and nose, according to the Dauphiné Libéré newspaper, which reported the crime that took place at 6.30 am on Saturday.
“All parts of her face carry traces of the violent aggression,” the newspaper reported.
The woman, a tourist, was being treated at Henri-Duffaut hospital in Avignon and was said to be in shock.
Nothing was stolen, the newspaper reported.
The young woman was staying in the rue des Infirmières, in the centre of town, which sees a rise in visitor numbers in July when the Avignon theatre festival is held.
She did not know the attackers, one of whom hit her repeatedly on the face with a motorcycle chain lock.
The three men ran away, leaving their victim and the chain behind.
The préfecture of the Vaucluse, the police commissariat and the office of the prosecutor in Avignon, which is responsible for the investigation, declined to comment on the case.
