Knife attack in Annecy: attacker referred to assizes court
According to BFM TV, the Chambéry appeals court ordered on 6 October 2026 the referral of Abdalmasih H. to the Haute-Savoie assizes court, three years after the attack at Le Pâquier which wounded six people.
Referral to assizes court for the Le Pâquier attack
The Chambéry appeals court ordered on Wednesday 7 October the referral of Abdalmasih H. to the Haute-Savoie assizes court, according to BFM TV citing a statement from the Annecy prosecutor's office. The knife attack, which occurred on 8 June 2023 at Le Pâquier park, targeted children and walkers on the shores of Lake Annecy.
The accused will be tried for attempted murder of thirteen victims, assault with a weapon against two victims and armed rebellion. Four children aged 22 to 36 months had been seriously injured, including a British child and a Dutch child. Two septuagenarians were also attacked during the incident.
A psychiatric assessment conducted in May concluded that Abdalmasih H.'s discernment was "impaired" but not "abolished" at the time of the acts. The prosecutor noted that this conclusion did not prevent him from being held responsible before justice. "Since the person under examination was manifestly not suffering from a psychic or neuropsychic disorder that had abolished his discernment, there can be no reason justifying that he not be brought to trial," the statement said.
Abdalmasih H., a 31-year-old Syrian refugee at the time of the acts, had travelled through Italy and Switzerland before arriving in Annecy in October 2022, where he slept on the streets. The courts had quickly ruled out any terrorist motivation. Videos of the attack widely circulated on social media had sparked considerable emotion in France.
The appeals court's decision may still be subject to a cassation appeal.
Source: BFM TV