'An absolute horror': 'Whole family killed' in France in Christmas attack, police say

Four young children and their mother were killed in their home near Paris in an "exceptionally violent crime", police say. The children's father was arrested on Tuesday.

The mother and two daughters, aged seven and 10, were stabbed so many times overnight from Sunday to Monday that police could not work out the number of wounds, Prosecutor Jean-Baptiste Bladier told reporters in the city of Meaux.

Police also found the couple’s two sons, ages 9 months and four-years-old, had been suffocated or drowned at the apartment.

The prosecutor described the scene as a small, blood-stained apartment, left in extreme disarray.

“The human toll is horrifying, a whole family was killed, stabbed in an atrocious conditions. It’s an absolute horror," Meaux Mayor Jean-Francois Cope told The Associated Press.

Neighbours spotted a pool of blood outside, leaking from the family’s door on Christmas Day and alerted police, who discovered the five bodies, the prosecutor sad.

“It was simply a mother fighting for her children, she was never complaining,” neighbour Maissa Ketfi said.

She added: “We all had a big knot in our stomachs when we learned what happened. ... We cannot even imagine the scene.”

Flowers, a stuffed toy and a holiday garland adorned a fence outside the apartment building Tuesday, in honor of the victims. The windows of the apartment were shuttered.

The motive for the killings is currently unclear.

A 33-year-old man born in the Paris suburb of Colombes, was arrested Tuesday outside his father’s home northeast of the French capital, the prosecutor said.

The couple had been together for 14 years and had known each other since high school, Mr Bladier said.

None of the family members’ names were released, according to French law protecting minors who are victims of crimes.

Police are investigating the five homicides, and the suspect will undergo psychiatric examination to determine the next steps, the prosecutor said.

In France more that 100 women have been killed by their current or former partners in France so far this year.

The mayor called for coordinated action to address violence by people with psychiatric problems and to protect victims before it's too late.

“I recognise the feeling of helplessness in such an event, but on a national level we need to have a deep assessment and rethinking of the consequences of psychiatric troubles on the families of these individuals,” he said.

Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know...