Former Liverpool player Anthony Le Tallec describes seeing Annecy knife attack on children

Footballer said he was out running when he saw the attacker coming towards him

Former Liverpool footballer Anthony Le Tallec witnessed the Annecy attack. Photo: Anthony Le Tallec / Instagram

A former Liverpool football player described witnessing the mass stabbing in France in which several pre-school children were hurt.

Anthony Le Tallec posted a video on Instagram in which he said he was running by a lake in Annecy when people ran towards him and urged him to flee.

A man armed with a knife reportedly attacked the group at 9.45am local time as children were playing in a park near the lake in the town, which is in the French Alps.

Several children, some in pushchairs and thought to be about three years old, were injured in the attack.

In the video, Le Tallec says the suspect suddenly appeared in front of him and was being chased by police officers.

"He came near me, so I moved, I moved away," said the 38-year-old, who was wearing a Liverpool shirt.

"I see him go to towards a grandma and a grandpa, and he attacked the grandpa, I said to the cops: 'Shoot him! Kill him!'

"He attacked once, twice and then they started to shoot him."

Le Tallec said he carried on running along the lake but then spotted the injured children.

“It’s unfortunate, but it’s crazy to have this in Annecy," he said.

He later told the local Dauphine Libere newspaper: "He wanted to attack everyone. I moved away and he lunged at an old man and woman and stabbed the old man."

Witnesses said at least one child involved in the attack was in a pushchair and some appeared to be very young.

The suspect was a Syrian citizen in his 30s with legal refugee status in France, a police official told Reuters and AFP.

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Twitter that the knife attack was an act of "absolute cowardice".

"Children and one adult are between life and death. The nation is in shock," Mr Macron said.

The children were reportedly on a school trip.

Reports on the number of victims vary, but according to the latest statement, five people were injured – four children and an adult.

Police said two of the children are in a life-threatening condition, while one adult suffered life-threatening wounds. The other two children were "slightly hurt", they said.

BFM TV showed footage of several policemen overpowering an individual in a park.

The motive is unclear and the alleged attacker is not known to the security services, according to a person involved in the investigation.

In Paris, politicians interrupted a debate to observe a moment of silence for the injured.

Le Tallec moved from French club Le Havre to Liverpool in 2001 and played for FC Annecy before retiring from the game in 2021.