France, June 11 -- Following the death of a teaching assistant who was stabbed by a 14-year-old pupil during a bag check at a secondary school in eastern France on Tuesday, Prime Minister Francois Bayrou has announced that stricter rules on the sale of knives to minors will come into effect immediately.

In a bid to tackle what President Emmanuel Macron described as "a senseless surge of violence," the French government will issue a decree "within 15 days" banning the sale of knives to minors.

Bayrou said Tuesday's tragedy showed "a breakdown of the society in which we live." adding:"This is not just an isolated incident."

French lawmakers observed a minute's silence in parliament, hours after the fatal attack by a 14-year-old boy on a ...