A man armed with a knife shouting “Allah Akbar” killed a teacher and seriously injured two people at a high school in Arras, northern France, on Friday morning.
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A video of the suspect attempting to attack staff was filmed by students locked in the classroom.
“He’s got a knife, guys, he’s got a knife!” There’s the vice principal! They will fight, they have everyone evacuated. He is sick! It’s crazy,” say the young people filming the scene.
Other videos circulating on social networks show a young man wearing black trousers and a gray jacket fighting with several adults in the pub’s courtyard, visibly with a weapon in his hand, before making his way to the pub’s door.
One of the people trying to arrest the suspect seen in the video above is Martin Doussau, a philosophy teacher at Gambetta High School.
“I saw the attacker attacking someone in the canteen, I later found out it was the head chef. He chased him and threatened him with a knife. He had apparently already struck, because the cook had blood on his hands and actually appeared to be injured,” explains Mr. Doussau a few moments after the events.
Martin Doussau | AFP
“I wanted to step forward at that moment, intervene a little. The person who had already intervened the first time [possiblement, le proviseur adjoint] advised me against it and forced me back into the facility. The attacker turned to me and saw that I had moved forward and started talking to him. He said to me, “Are you a history teacher?” He chased me because I tried to intervene. I was followed for a few minutes, a few moments, I sought refuge…” he told AFP.
“We barricaded ourselves, then the police came and immobilized him.” According to him, the victim was a French teacher at the university.
According to a police source, the man arrested on Friday, aged 20, is of Chechen origin. Her 17-year-old brother was arrested near another facility, she added.
Screenshot | Portal
The National Anti-Terror Prosecutor’s Office announced that it had opened an investigation.
AFP journalists noted that a large security perimeter was set up around the building, where police, fire and emergency services were stationed. Parents were present in front of the high school, where students are visible through the windows.
The high school students and staff are confined to the facility, a police source said.
The government has asked to immediately strengthen security at all educational institutions in France.
This attack comes as war rages in Israel, raising fears that the conflict could be imported into France.
– With Agence France-Presse