4 young children are critically wounded in a knife attack in a French Alpine town

Security forces gather in a playground at the scene of knife attack in Annecy, a town in the French Alps, on Thursday. (Jean-Christophe Bott/Keystone via AP)

PARIS — As bystanders screamed for help, a man with a knife stabbed four young children at a lakeside park in the French Alps on Thursday, assaulting at least one in a stroller repeatedly. The children between 22 months and 3 years old suffered life-threatening injuries, and two adults also were wounded, authorities said.

The helplessness of the young victims and the savagery of the attack sickened France.