“On this day, to Portugal, Camos and the Portuguese communities, President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa thanked the example of courage and citizenship of our comrade Manuel da Ponte, who tried to risk his life to stop the barbaric attack on children in the city of Annecy. , in France”, on the official website of the President of the Republic on the Internet Reading the published note.
Marcelo Rebelo de Souza says he is monitoring the Portuguese’s medical situation and “wishes him a speedy recovery”.
A knife attacker wounded six people, including four young children, in a park in the French Alps town of Annecy on Thursday and was arrested after the attack, the French interior ministry said.
In a statement released on Friday, Portugal’s foreign ministry said the Portuguese citizen was seriously injured but was now in a critical condition.
“During the tragic event, a Portuguese citizen was seriously injured when he tried to stop the assailant from fleeing the police, and he is now out of danger,” it said. An act of courage and bravery, a word of deep gratitude”.
The motives of the 31-year-old Syrian refugee are unclear, and the French prosecutor’s office said the attack had no “clear terrorist intent.”
The attacker, Abdelmasih H., is in police custody.
In some videos circulating online, the assailant is heard shouting “in the name of Jesus Christ” during the attack.
The attacker wore a crucifix and had a prayer book among his possessions. He declared himself a Christian when he applied for asylum.
Ten years ago he received refugee status in Sweden, where he is married to a woman from whom he separated last year and has a child.
Since the end of 2022, he has been in France, where he applied for asylum but has no fixed address.
The response to the asylum application was negative, French officials insisted, last Sunday, just days before the attack in the park in Annecy.