French town honors heroes who fought knife attacker

ANNECY, France — Hundreds of residents of the French town of Annecy gathered on Sunday to honor the people who rushed to stop a man accused of stabbing six people, including four toddlers, at a playground last week.

In the same park where the tragedy unfolded on Thursday, people laid flowers, while on a nearby bench someone had written the names of the child victims inside a heart.

"It's a strong sign of unity and solidarity that we're all here together," said the city's mayor Francois Astorg.

"We are together. We will face this together," he added, while paying tribute to those who responded to the attack "with courage and professionalism".

They include two municipal agents who tried to stop the attacker with a shovel, a young man renting out pedal boats and a math teacher who both tried to step in, and a tourist who chased the attacker. A childminder also rushed in to rescue two wounded children.

On Friday, France's President Emmanuel Macron met the civilians being hailed as heroes for chasing the attacker from the playground where the stabbings took place.

On Saturday, public prosecutor Line Bonnet-Mathis paid tribute to those who, "by their actions, were able to preserve human lives".She also acknowledged the work of the emergency services.

The Syrian refugee detained over the stabbings, named as Abdalmasih H., had been charged with "attempted murder", she said.

The attack left the normally peaceful lakeside town in shock. Hundreds of people have laid flowers, soft toys and heart-shaped balloons at the site of the attack.

Abdalmasih H. "did not wish to speak" during his 48 hours in police custody nor before the magistrates leading the investigation, Bonnet-Mathis said on Saturday.

After two psychiatric evaluations, he was deemed "compatible with police custody", and doctors had determined he did not suffer from delusions.

However, it was too early to diagnose or rule out other psychological pathologies, she said.

The suspect has been placed in solitary confinement at the Aiton penitentiary, a source close to the case told Agence France-Presse.

Bonnet-Mathis said the victims of the attack were no longer in a life-threatening condition.

The children, aged between 22 months and 3 years, were initially hospitalized in a serious condition, while one adult was seriously wounded and another suffered minor injuries.

Agencies Via Xinhua