France attack: What we know about stabbing of children in Annecy playground

Several children and two adults have been injured in a knife attack in France.

One of the injured children is British, according to foreign secretary James Cleverly. A 78-year-old man was also among the wounded, officials said.

French interior minister Gerald Darmanin said the attack took place in a square in the lakeside town of Annecy in the south east of the country.

“Several people including children have been injured by an individual armed with a knife in a square in Annecy,” he tweeted.

What do we know about the attack?

A man armed with a knife attacked a group of children and adults in a park.

The attack took place in a playground in the medieval town in the French Alps.

Sky News international correspondent John Sparks says it “would be very busy at this time of year with tourists and residents out on the streets”.

Four children and two adults were injured.

They include a two-year-old British girl, a 22-month-old German boy, and a brother and sister aged two and three, French broadcaster BFMTV reports. One of the children is Dutch, the local prosecutor says.

The siblings suffered life-threatening injuries and are in intensive care, but the status of the British child’s injuries is not known.

The adults were two men, one of whom was 78, according to BFMTV.

What about the attacker?

The attacker is a Syrian national who was granted refugee status in Sweden 10 years ago but had asked for settled status in France, French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne told a press conference.

He is 31 and was arrested and detained by police, she said, adding that he was “slightly injured” by those apprehending him.

As well as the main investigation, another one has been launched into why police discharged a firearm.

He was not known to the French security services, he has no criminal or psychiatric history , Ms Borne said.

This video appears to have been taken by a bystander after the attack.

You can hear what sounds like screams of people.

Two members of the public with their rucksacks appear to try to stop the attacker or slow down his progress.

What did witnesses see – and what is local media reporting?

One witness told BFMTV he saw first aiders working on “little bodies, three or four years old, perhaps”.

Local politician Antoine Armand said the children were attacked on a playground near a primary school.

Speaking to BFMTV from the National Assembly building in Paris, he said the victims include “very young” children who were “savagely attacked”.

BFMTV showed footage of several policemen overpowering an individual in a park.

Another witness, who gave his name as Ferdinand, told BFMTV: “He jumped (in the playground), started shouting and then went towards the strollers, repeatedly hitting the little ones with a knife.

Another witness who owns a restaurant nearby, George, said: “Mothers were crying, everybody was running.”

Yohan, who owns an ice-cream parlour opposite the park, said: “It’s a place where babysitters and parents take young children to play. I often see around 15 toddlers there in the morning, and the atmosphere is fantastic.”

What have the president and politicians said?

Emmanuel Macron said it was an “absolutely cowardly attack in a park” and the “nation is in shock”.

In Paris, politicians interrupted a debate to hold a moment of silence for the victims, BFMTV reported.

The assembly president, Yael Braun-Pivet, said: “There are some very young children who are in critical condition and I invite you to respect a minute of silence for them, for their families, and so that, we hope, the consequences of this very grave attack do not lead to the nation grieving.”

Speaking at an OECD press conference in Paris on Thursday afternoon, Foreign Secretary James Cleverly described it as a “terrible act of violence”.

“Of course, our thoughts are with the victims and the families and we stand ready to support the French authorities in whichever way we can,” he said.

Confirming the injured British child, he added: “We’ve already deployed British consulate officials who are travelling to the area to make themselves available to support the family.”