How a ‘Backpack Hero,’ Age 24, Will Be Made a Knight of the Legion of Honor by President Macron

And why the president is so eager to enroll the youngster for a new, so to speak, crusade.

Denis Balibouse/pool via AP
Henri D'Anselme, center, the 'backpack hero,' on June 9, 2023. Denis Balibouse/pool via AP

Henri d’Anselme, 24, France’s “backpack hero,” will be made a knight of the Legion of Honor by President Macron on July 14,  Bastille Day. The young man became on June 8 instantly famous as he twirled one of his two backpacks to chase away from a public park a Syrian migrant, Abdelmasih Hanun, who had just stabbed four infant children and two senior citizens. The scene, which took place at Annecy, in the French Alps, was captured on a smartphone video and went viral.

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