Knife Attack in France: Macron Reports ‘Positive’ News on Children Hurt

The health of the preschool children who were seriously hurt in a mass knife assault by a Syrian refugee on Friday was described as “heading in the right direction” by French President Emmanuel Macron despite the attacker’s refusal to cooperate with authorities.

The four victims, who ranged in age from 22 months to three years old, were stabbed on Thursday at a playground in Annecy, an Alpine town known for its picturesque lakeside setting and popularity with visitors.

Sources close to the inquiry claimed the attacker was keeping “totally silent” and “obstructing justice” as social media erupted with appreciation for rescue personnel and a guy praised as a hero for pursuing the assailant out of the area.

Although prosecutors said there was no connection to terrorism in the incident, the rampage heightened emotions over immigration in France, with right-wing politicians capitalizing on the suspect’s ancestry.

Macron and his wife Brigitte arrived in Grenoble, a city in the southeast where three of the kids are receiving medical attention.

After seeing the injured youngsters in the hospital, he remarked in Annecy, “Everything I was told is heading in the right direction,” and added that the latest on their health was “positive.”

“Attacking children is the most barbaric act there is,” he said, emphasizing his “pride” in the rescuers’ efforts.

The fourth youngster, a Dutch citizen, is being treated at Geneva’s Swiss hospital. Foreign Minister of the Netherlands Wopke Hoekstra said that she is “out of danger.”

The other victims are French, and one of the victims is British.

‘PRAY FOR THE CHILDREN’

Additionally, Macron spoke with the bystanders who were lauded as heroes for pursuing the assailant off the playground.

As the hashtag #MerciHenri gained popularity on social media, Henri, one of the people who stepped in, said on Instagram, “Pray for the children, I am doing fine.”

Henri attended a mass for the victims on Friday along with hundreds of other believers.

Overnight, a makeshift shrine with candles, flowers, and notes appeared in the park.

Local Leo Ganassali, 21, put flowers and stated, “We are not ready for these kinds of events.”

“I came here as a child to play in this park, and to see it in mourning is very, very tough.”

In a video captured by a spectator and obtained by AFP, the assailant, who was clad in all black and had a blade that was about 10 centimeters (four inches) long, was heard yelling “in the name of Jesus Christ.”

The imprisonment of the defendant, identified as Abdalmasih H., who is being investigated for attempted murder, has been increased after a mental evaluation, according to regional prosecutor Line Bonnet-Mathis.

The suspect, who is in his early 30s, just went through a divorce from a Swedish citizen, and had previously resided in Sweden for ten years, where he was given refugee status in April, according to AFP and security sources.

“About four months ago, he phoned. He was residing in a church, according to his ex-wife, who also claimed that he fled the nation because he was unable to get Swedish citizenship.

According to Gerald Darmanin, minister of the interior of France, “he had also sought asylum in Switzerland, Italy, and France for reasons not well explained.”

Darmanin referred to the information that his application was turned down in France last Sunday as a “troubling coincidence” given that he already had refugee status in Sweden.

Witnesses described the attacker, who was rushing about the park near Lake Annecy while sporting sunglasses and a bandana, hitting victims seemingly at random. Police with guns detained him there and then.

Many onlookers were alarmed to see that the attack’s footage was widely shared on Twitter for many hours.

‘TIME OF EMOTION’

In the last ten years or so, France has had a number of assaults, the most carried out by Islamic extremists.

Most recently, a national discussion about the effect of radical Islam in underprivileged communities was sparked by the daylight beheading of a teacher in 2020 in a Paris suburbia near his school by a radicalized Chechen refugee.

The incident on Thursday sparked new discussion about France’s immigration and refugee policies.

According to Eric Ciotti, leader of the right-wing Republicans party, the attacker “seems to have the same profile that you see often in these attacks,” he told reporters in parliament.

Marine Le Pen, the leader of the far-right National Rally (RN), said on French radio that France should “regain sovereignty” over immigration.

Such discussions, according to government spokesperson Olivier Veran, are unnecessary “when we are in the time of emotion, when the kids are on the operating table.”

Elisabeth Borne, the prime minister, urged “everyone to show dignity in these circumstances.”