The toll of the tragedy suddenly increased in Bas-Rhin. A 12-year-old girl died after having a heart attack during the confinement of her school, following the stabbing of two other girls near a school and a square in the town of Souffelweyersheim, near of Strasbourg, the rectorate announced this Friday.
The attack occurred near the Dannenberger primary school, which is close to the Sept Arpents college, where the deceased teenager attended school.
During the attack, the establishment was confined in the same way as the primary school. During this period of time, a 4th grade student suffered a heart attack, indicated the prefect of Bas-Rhin https://twitter.com/Prefet67/status/1780985660414865563?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1780985660414865563%7Ctwgr%5Eccae6161ca22fb24c2b6aeb98af916589a997f5e%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.leparisien.fr%2Ffaits-divers%2Fbas-rhin-attaque-au-couteau-pres-de-strasbourg-deux-enfants-legerement-blesses-18-04-2024-ZXJLTNEZ4JB7NNGH6G75NEXYSA.php at the end of the afternoon. She received first aid on the spot, before the Samu intervened. She was transported “in serious condition” to the Hautepierre emergency room in Strasbourg, authorities said. According to our information, the 12-year-old girl died in hospital, succumbing to cardiorespiratory arrest.
Questioned by France Bleu before the announcement of the teenager’s death, the city’s mayor Pierre Perrin said he was “very upset” to learn that she had been unwell. “I think of his parents, of his brother,” he declared. He also indicated that he had informed the mayor of the neighboring town of Reichstett, where the young girl was domiciled according to him.
All schools in the town had been confined according to the National Education security protocol, the general director of Souffelweyersheim town hall services told the regional newspaper L’Alsace.
The two girls affected were only slightly injured
The two young minors affected by the stabbings are slightly injured, in “relative emergency” according to the prefect of Bas-Rhin. One, aged 11, was attacked in front of the school, while the other, aged 6, was attacked in a square nearby. They were treated in the pediatric emergency room of Strasbourg University Hospital. The primary school was gradually deconfined: around 4 p.m., parents were able to start joining their children in the playground, before being able to leave the premises.
The assailant, aged 30 according to our information, had not entered the school grounds, according to the authorities. He was quickly arrested after the attack. The gendarmerie indicated that the suspect was unknown to the justice system and had never been accused of radicalization. An investigation is underway, according to the chief of staff of the prefect Jean-Baptiste Peyrat. When contacted, the Strasbourg public prosecutor only confirmed that the suspect is currently in police custody.
Psychiatric problems
According to a Source close to the case, the attacker suffers from psychiatric problems. He had completed three stays in suitable structures and was being monitored, but he had stopped his treatment since November 2023. He disappeared on Wednesday evening, when he was in a suicidal state. The man had already attempted suicide in 2022.
“The security of the school (Dannenberger) will be ensured” in the days to come, assured the prefect’s chief of staff. A psychological unit has also been set up within the establishment, and it will be “maintained as much as necessary this evening and in the days to come”. University hospitals have opened a number that families can call to be seen and received throughout the school holiday period, which begins Friday evening for zone B.
