The 31-year-old attacker was using child identity documents issued to an Afghan minor, according to claims made by an investigating source.

He was described as being of Pakistani or Afghan origin, and began "slashing passers-by" on the Loire Quay in the north of the city, according to reports.

Armed with a 15-inch blade and a metal bar, he first stabbed two men and a woman outside the MK2 cinema complex.

He then proceeded to a nearby street, where he attacked two British tourists, according to investigators.