Man to Face Trial for Attempted Murder in French Alps Playground Attack

A man accused of a playground attack in the French Alps in June 2023, which left a British toddler with a stab wound and injured 12 others, will go to trial charged with attempted murder. Abdalmasih Hanoun also faces charges of armed resistance and the attempted murder of 12 additional people.

The attack occurred at a park in Le Paquier, in the southeast of France. The British child, who was three years old at the time, was visiting the area with her parents. French prosecutors stated that the child sustained a single stab wound. In total, four children aged between 22 months and three years were wounded, along with two adults.

Prosecutors announced that Hanoun will face trial at Haute-Savoie Assize Court in Annecy within the next year. The statement from the public prosecutor's office detailed that Hanoun will answer charges of attempted murder for 13 victims, violence with a weapon without total work incapacity for two victims, and armed resistance. The statement also noted that experts assessed the defendant's mental state and found he was not suffering from a psychological or neuropsychological disorder at the time of the attack, meaning there are no grounds to dismiss the indictment.

Following the incident on June 8, 2023, officials confirmed that all four young victims were in stable condition. The nationalities of the children included one Dutch national and two French nationals from the Haute-Savoie region. The two adults injured in the attack were reported to be out of danger. The decision to proceed with the trial may be subject to appeal, according to the prosecutor's office.