A knife attack in Annecy, southeast France, has left two children and an adult in a life-threatening condition. A total of four children and an adult were injured in the incident. French President Emmanuel Macron stated that those critically injured are currently “between life and death.” The children involved are approximately three years old, as confirmed by the police.
Authorities revealed that the perpetrator was a Syrian man with legal refugee status. He was not previously known to the French security services, and the motive behind the attack remains unclear, according to a source cited by Reuters news agency. BFMTV shared footage showing several policemen apprehending the individual in a park.
Witnesses provided harrowing accounts of the incident. Ferdinand, one witness, reported that the perpetrator “jumped (in the playground), started shouting, and then went towards the strollers, repeatedly hitting the little ones with a knife.” Another witness, George, who owns a nearby restaurant, stated, “Mothers were crying, everybody was running.”
Thanks to the prompt action taken by the police, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin has confirmed the arrest of a suspect. President Macron condemned the attack as an “absolutely cowardly” act and expressed the nation’s shock. Antoine Armand, a local politician, described the attack as “abominable,” highlighting that children were targeted in a playground.
French national assembly speaker Yael Braun-Pivet denounced the attack, stating that “there is nothing more abominable than to attack children.” Francois Astorg, the mayor of Annecy, was present at the scene and pledged to address the incident publicly. He urged people to avoid the Paquier area of the French alpine town and expressed his condolences to the victims and their families.
In Paris, politicians interrupted a debate to observe a moment of silence for the victims as a show of solidarity, as reported by BFMTV.
