UPDATED: Four children injured in knife attack in French town of Annecy
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PARIS, June 8 (Reuters) – A Syrian national wounded four children and an adult in a knife attack in a French park on Thursday, police said, leaving some of the victims critically ill in hospital.
The attack, which happened in the French alpine town of Annecy, was carried out by a Syrian national with legal refugee status in France, a police official told Reuters.
“Children and one adult are between life and death. The nation is in shock,” French President Emmanuel Macron said in a statement on Twitter, calling the attack “an act of absolute cowardice”.
French Interior minister Gerald Darmanin said on Twitter that attacker had been arrested.
Plusieurs personnes dont des enfants ont été blessés par un individu armé d’un couteau dans un square à Annecy. L’individu a été interpellé grâce à l’intervention très rapide des forces de l’ordre.
Two children and one adult are in life-threatening condition, while two children were slightly hurt, police said.
Attaque d’une lâcheté absolue ce matin dans un parc à Annecy. Des enfants et un adulte sont entre la vie et la mort. La Nation est sous le choc. Nos pensées les accompagnent ainsi que leurs familles et les secours mobilisés.
Witnesses said at least one child involved was in a stroller.
BFM TV showed footage of several policemen overpowering an individual in a park.
“Nothing more abominable than to attack children,” French national assembly speaker Yael Braun-Pivet said on Twitter. The French parliament observed a minute of silence to mark the incident.
Emergency services gather at the scene of a knife attack in Annecy, France, 08 June 2023. The Prefecture of Haute-Savoie confirmed on 08 June that a man had carried out an attack in the Paquier d’Annecy park area, injuring at least six people who were taken to hospital, including four children. EPA-EFE/GREGORY YETCHMENIZA
