ÉVRY, France, April 5, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - A 15-year-old teenager has been badly

beaten in a town south of Paris and rushed to hospital following a cardiac
arrest, in the latest incident of school violence in France.

Thursday's attack came at a time of heightened tensions around French
schools.
 
Earlier this week a teenage girl was left temporarily comatose after being
beaten outside her school in the south of the country.

In the new incident, which occurred in the town of Viry-ChYtillon, located
around 20 kilometres (12 miles) south of Paris, a teenager was attacked by
several people as he left school on Thursday afternoon.

The public prosecutor's office said it had opened a probe into attempted
murder and gang assault.

The schoolboy suffered cardiorespiratory arrest, a police source said.
 
He was rushed to Necker hospital, a top paediatric hospital in Paris, said
Jean-Marie Vilain, the mayor of Viry-ChYtillon.

The assailants "tried to massacre him", said Vilain, speaking of "the worst
kind of thugs".

"This extreme violence is becoming commonplace," he added.
 
According to the mayor, psychological help would be provided to the pupils
and teachers of the school, which the teenager attended.

According to a police source, the teenager was beaten by several people who
then fled.

The pupil was found in a street "not far from his school", according to
prosecutors.
 
The school is located in a working-class ditrict of Viry-ChYtillon, which is
home to around 30,000 people.

No arrests had been made by Thursday evening.

On Tuesday, a teenage girl was attacked outside her school in the southern
city of Montpellier.

Prosecutors said the girl was "seriously injured".

Three alleged attackers have been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder
of a minor.

One of the accused is a girl from the same school.

Dozens of messages threatening attacks have been sent to schools around
France in recent days.