Overview

• The 66-year-old music teacher suffered facial wounds that are not life-threatening after being attacked during class at Robert Schuman school in Benfeld.
• The suspect fled on a bicycle and, at the moment of arrest, cut his own neck before being operated on in Strasbourg, where his prognosis remains critical, according to prosecutor Clarisse Taron.
• Education Minister Élisabeth Borne condemned the attack, visited the town, and activated emergency psychological support for students and staff after confinement and evacuation procedures.
• Officials and school records describe the teen as having prior psychological difficulties, residence in youth-care institutions, and a fascination with Hitler and weapons, with reports of Nazi symbols drawn at school.
• The incident adds to a series of school knife attacks in 2025 that have intensified debate over security measures and highlighted shortages of nurses, social workers, and psychologists identified by a parliamentary inquiry.