Man of Chechen Origin Suspected of Radicalization Kills Teacher in Arras, France Attack

Arras, France (AP) – A man of Chechen origin who was under surveillance by the French security services due to suspected radicalization stabbed a teacher to death and critically wounded two other people at a high school in Arras, northern France on Friday morning.

Videos posted on social media showed several people, including one holding a chair in front of his body, trying to stop the man as he tried to approach the school building. French anti-terror prosecutors are leading the investigation into the stabbings at the Gambetta-Carnot school, which enrolls students ages 11-18.

The attack happened almost three years after another teacher, Samuel Paty, was beheaded by a radicalized Chechen near a Paris area school. Police arrived quickly on the scene and the school was evacuated.

The identity of the attacker and the motive behind the attack are still unknown. The French Interior Minister, Gerald Darmanin, said that the attack was an act of “Islamist terrorism” and that the attacker was known to the security services.

The French government has declared a national day of mourning in honor of the teacher who was killed in the attack. The government has also announced that it will be increasing security measures at schools across the country.