In the East French town of Nogent, a 31-year-old teaching assistant has been stabbed to death. The woman was conducting a bag check outside the school when she was attacked. A fourteen-year-old student has been arrested.
President Emmanuel Macron confirms the woman’s death on X. According to him, she fell victim to senseless violence while she actually wanted to protect the children at the school. A police officer was slightly injured during the arrest of the student, BFMTV reports.
“The country is in mourning and the government is mobilized to reduce crime,” Macron writes. Prime Minister François Bayrou says on X that the knife problem in French schools has reached a “critical point.” Minister of Education Élisabeth Borne is en route to Nogent.
In France, several people have been attacked by students from schools in recent years. This concerns both students and staff. In March, the police therefore announced that they would start checking bags for knives and other weapons. At the end of April, the Ministry of Education reported that 94 knives had been seized during 958 random checks at schools.
A long preparation time preceded the bag check at the school in question, the school management tells press agency AFP. This involved cooperation with the police.