A British child has been injured along with several other young children following a knife attack in a lakeside park in the French Alps, UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly has confirmed.
The attack on Thursday morning saw multiple children stabbed inside a playground in the town of Annecy, including one in a pushchair, with adults also attacked. Local police said that the four child victims are all under the age of five, while national police confirmed that two of the children suffered life-threatening injuries, as did one adult.
Speaking at a press conference in France hours after the attack, the Foreign Secretary said: "Our thoughts are with the victims and the families, and we stand ready to support the French authorities in whichever way we can." Cleverly added he was "also aware that one of the people, one of the children injured, was a British national".
READ MORE: Victim in hospital after broad daylight stabbing in Kenton
He went on: "We have already deployed British consular officials who are travelling to the area to make themselves available to support the family. And of course we stand in strong solidarity with the people of France at this terrible time."
Video on social media appeared to show the attack in a children's play park, with footage showing a man in dark glasses and a blue scarf covering his head brandishing a blade as people screamed for help. He first circled the playground, slashing at a bystander, and then climbed over its barriers to attack people inside.
The attack was condemned by French president Emmanuel Macron, who wrote on Twitter: "Attack of absolute cowardice this morning in a park in Annecy. Children and an adult are between life and death. The nation is in shock. Our thoughts are with them as well as their families and the emergency services mobilised."
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak echoed the sentiments, tweeting: "My thoughts are with all of those affected by the shocking attack in Annecy this morning. As Emmanuel Macron said, it was a truly cowardly act. The UK and France have always stood together against acts of violence, and we do so again today."
READ NEXT:
