An attack in France by a Syrian refugee armed with a knife caused consternation this Thursday (8) in a park in Annecy, in the French Alps, with six people injured, including four small children, before the perpetrator was arrested.

This “absolutely cowardly attack,” which put “several children and one adult between life and death,” caused a stir in France and demonstrations of solidarity in Europe, according to President Emmanuel Macron.

A young man lights candles in memory of the victims of an attack in France. Photo: OLIVIER CHASSIGNOLE / AFP / ND

The attacker, Abdalmasih H., was a Syrian refugee who received protection in Sweden in 2013, where he lived for ten years. He moved to France in late 2022, where he applied for asylum in November, according to multiple sources.

Justice has launched an investigation into the attempted murders, ruling out “terrorist motives” for the time being, said Annecy prosecutor Lyn Bonnet-Mathis, who also clarified that the attacker did not act under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

French Prime Minister Elisabeth Born, who visited the Alpine resort town of about 140,000, noted that the man had no known forensic or psychiatric training.

In France, his status was legal. His ex-wife in Sweden, with whom he has a three-year-old daughter, told AFP that he left because he did not receive Swedish citizenship. What’s more, he told her four months ago that he was living “in a church” in France.

The attacker’s mother, who has been living in the United States for ten years, said she was in a “state of shock.” According to her, her son “suffers from severe depression.”

“He didn’t tell me anything. My daughter-in-law told me,” he clarified. “She said that he was never healthy, always depressed, with bad thoughts, didn’t want to leave the house, didn’t want to work…,” he said .

According to a video seen by AFP, the attacker was shouting “in the name of Jesus Christ” in English. According to a police source, he was carrying a cross when he was arrested and claimed in his asylum case that he was a “Christian from Syria”.

Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin told TF1 that “for reasons that are still unclear, he also applied for asylum in Switzerland, Italy and France.”

He then called the denial of asylum and the knife attack “an unsettling coincidence”.

The Minister also explained that the aggressor must undergo a psychiatric examination this Friday morning.

Four children are in critical condition

The attack happened around 9:30 am (4:30 GMT) in the Gardens of Europe, a popular park on the shores of Lake Annecy.

According to the footage of the drama, dressed in black and with a headscarf, the assailant walked up to the carts and attacked the children in the recreation area.

Several witnesses reported that the assailant tried to flee, injuring a man in his path, before being quickly apprehended by police, who opened fire on him.

“He wanted to attack everyone. I left and he attacked my grandparents and stabbed my grandfather,” former Saint-Étienne and Liverpool player Anthony Le Tallec told the regional newspaper Le Dauphiné libéré.

Six people were injured, including four children, they are in critical condition. According to the Annecy prosecutor, an adult is also in serious condition.

Four children, including a Dutchman and a Briton, were taken to Geneva (Switzerland) and Grenoble after the first treatment on the spot.

“Their state of health is extremely fragile, they are still in an emergency situation,” prosecutor Bonnet-Mathis said, stressing that the attacker was aiming at “vital organs.”

An adult was also hospitalized after being attacked by his assailant and then shot dead by police during his arrest. He added that another adult received lighter injuries.

Inhumane: a witness to the terrorist attack in France

In the afternoon, authorities reopened access to the park. Many children returned to play in the same area where the attack took place, which changed life in this peaceful city.

“My 17-year-old son saw it all. The man pulled out a knife and stabbed a child in a stroller […]. Then I saw a crowd, screams, blood, ”said the mother, who went to look for her son at the city hall.

“It’s inhumane. I heard the screams of my parents and saw the assailant with a knife […] I told myself I would die if I ran away, so I left,” said Clemence, a 17-year-old student.

From the left to the far right, political leaders condemned the attack and expressed solidarity with the victims and their families. The National Assembly observed a minute of silence.

In the context of political tensions over future immigration reform, right-wing and far-right parties have called for tougher policies to curb “mass immigration.”