France honors Americans, Briton for stopping train attack

The gunman – identified by French authorities using DNA as 25-year-old Moroccan Ayoub El-Khazzani – is detained and being questioned by French counterterrorism police outside Paris.

The passengers overpowered an armed suspected radical Islamist on a high-speed train bound for Paris on Friday.

He has also been praised for helping to stop the bleeding of a French-American passenger who was shot.

Three young Americans, who are credited with thwarting a terrorist attack on a French train, were given France’s highest honor Monday morning. But before he could, Stone, Skarlatos and Sadler rushed him and wrestled him to the ground.

Sadler was hailed as a hero by Sacramento State President Robert S. Nelsen. U.S. Ambassador to France Jane Hartley (2ndR), three U.S. citizens, National Guardsman Alek Skarlatos (L), Airman First Class Spencer Stone (2ndL) and student Anthony Sadler leave after a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, August 24, 2015.

The men said they had no choice but to react when they saw the gunman cocking his assault rifle.

Speaking about the incident on Sunday, Stone, 23, who almost lost a thumb in the fray with the gunman, who was armed with an AK-47, a knife and lots of ammunition, said he was awakened by the sound of a gunshot and that Skarlatos, 22, recently back from Afghanistan, “just hit me on the shoulder and said, ‘Let’s go, ‘ ” Stone said.

His and Stone’s military training “mostly kicked in after the assailant was already subdued”, he said, noting the medical care Stone provided and checking cars for weapons elsewhere.

They said the gunman was apparently untrained in firearms and that he could have used all his firepower to devastating effect if he had known more about weapons. “I ducked down in my seat”.

“I want the lesson to be learned that in times of terror like that, please do something”, said Sandler. “Alek took that. Took out a box cutter and started jabbing at me with it”. During the struggle, El-Khazzani pulled out a handgun and box cutter, slicing Stone in the arms.

Mr Norman had told a press conference he decided to act because he thought he was “probably going to die anyway”. And then I was able to grab him again and choke him unconscious while Alek was hitting him in the head with the pistol or rifle.

“What happened and what we did, it just feels unreal”, Mr. Skarlatos said in the Skype interview with The New York Times.