A Teacher in Critical Condition Following Knife Attack by Student in France

A secondary school teacher in south-eastern France was left in a critical condition on Tuesday after being stabbed by a 14-year-old pupil.

The 60-year-old female art teacher was stabbed three to four times in her chest in front of around 20 other students, according to a local official.

The pupil fled the classroom before being caught in the schoolyard, and was later arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.

Toulon's public prosecutor Raphaël Balland stated that there appeared to be no religious or political motive for the attack, implicating recent tensions between the student and the teacher.

Following the attack, La Guicharde school was evacuated in the early afternoon, and classes for Wednesday have been cancelled.

France's Education Minister Edouard Geffray expressed solidarity with the victim and the educational community via a post on social media.

This incident adds to a growing list of violent acts in schools across France, including a similar attack in 2025 involving a 14-year-old charged with murder.