Terror in Francead Annecywhere 4 children and two adults were attacked with a knife in a park by a Syrian migrant, who was later arrested by the police. All 4 injured children are in “very serious” condition, as reported at a press conference in the French Haute-Savoie city by the prosecutor, Line Bonet-Mathis. One of them was transferred to Geneva, another to Grenoble. For two of the children, the prognosis is guarded. According to Bonet-Mathis, they are a 2 and 3 year old brother and sister, a 22 month old Dutch boy and a 3 year old English girl, who were in Annecy for tourism.
An elderly man was also injured, a grandfather who was at the park with his grandchildren. According to media reports, 37 people are in a state of shock after witnessing the scene and are being followed by local health personnel.
Witnesses recounted the attack. The assailant began to “jump”, then “to shout” and “directed towards the strollers, starting to rage” with the knife, repeatedly, on the children”: this is the dramatic story of Ferdinand, one of the witnesses of the Annecy attack, reported by Le Parisien.Another witness, Anthony, said he saw “children and a mother on the ground”: “when the attacker saw that he was surrounded by police, he headed towards a couple and he went directly with the knife against a grandfather, who was there with his wife, and stabbed him”.
The bomber was immediately arrested. According to the police, it is a 31-year-old Syrian who had applied for asylum in France on November 28, 2022, according to sources from Le Parisien. In the meantime, he had obtained refugee status in Sweden with a decision of April 26, 2023. According to the police, he is neither registered nor reported by the intelligence services as a dangerous element. He declared himself a “Christian of Syria” and had a Christian cross with him at the time of his arrest.
Prosecutor Line Bonet-Mathis, during a press conference on the shores of Lake Annecy, broadcast live on TV, ruled out that it was terrorism. “There is no terrorist motive emerging,” she said. Speaking alongside Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne, Bonet-Mathis added that the bomber was in custody, “only slightly injured”.
Knife attack in Annecy: the escape of the killer with the weapon in hand
French President Emmanuel Macron spoke of an “attack of absolute cowardice”. In a tweet he added: “Children and an adult are between life and death. The nation is in shock.” At the news of the attack, the very tense debate that was underway in the Assemblée Nationale on pension reform was suspended and there was a minute’s silence.
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