Alan Loren-Guille (17), Image: Spitalfields_dublin/Instagram
French president Emmanuel Macron has congratulated the 17-year-old intern from France who helped disarm the suspect involved in Thursday’s Parnell Square attack in Dublin.
The suspect had attacked a queue of young schoolchildren who were being escorted by a creche worker into an after-school care facility.
Alan Loren-Guille (17) is originally from Ardennes, France. The final year secondary school student has been doing his internship in a restaurant in Dublin since October and was due to return to France at the end of November, according to French media, France Bleu and France 3.
Mr Macron called Mr Loren-Guille to “congratulate him and thank him for this act of bravery which helped save lives and which makes us all proud ,” the Élysée, the official residence of the French President, told French media Le Figaro yesterday.
“We salute the courage of our compatriot, who helped put an end to the attack perpetrated by an attacker in Dublin yesterday,” said the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs in Paris to Le Figaro.
“We also send our thoughts to the victims of this attack and their families. We stand with Ireland and the Irish people.”
“This is our own 17 year old super hero,” the pub and restaurant, Spitalfields, said on social media.
“Alan Loren-Guille who was one of the brave hero’s that managed to disarm the school children attacker yesterday in Dublin on his way to work. He is one of our brilliant French stagiaires in the kitchen @spitalfields_dublin.”
“He noticed something happening as he passed by and selflessly jumped in to stop the attacker and managed to wrestle the knife off him.”
The restaurant said the Frenchman is “fairly unscathed” despite having “ a couple a cuts to his hand and face.”
They added: “Without this act of bravery who knows what else might have happened. Our prayers are with the poor children, families and teachers who were affected by this tragedy. Please lookout for one and other. Not all superheroes wear capes.”