A woman and her three daughters have been stabbed in a French resort for being ‘scantily dressed’.

An eight-year-old girl was left fighting for her life after the attack in the Garde-Colombe in the Hautes-Alpes region of Southern France.

The man is believed to have attacked the three girls outside the family’s apartment before entering the building and attacking the mother.

Jean-Marc Duprat, a deputy mayor for the town of Laragne-Monteglin in the Hautes-Alpes region said the suspect, who is not related to them, was upset they were wearing shorts and T-shirts.

He’s believed to have met the family earlier in the week and was staying next door.

The girls are believed to be aged eight, 12 and 14 while their mother is 46. The knifeman is alleged to have fled the scene by car before

Amaury Navarranne from the regional council said: ‘The religious motive of the attack is in no doubt.

Meanwhile prosecutors said details were still ‘very vague’ and investigations were continuing.

The mayor of the town Edmond Francou said: ‘I was called around 9.45am to the holiday village next to the town hall because there had been a fight between two tenants in neighbouring apartments.

‘There was a crowd. That’s when I found a lady with three daughters who had stab injuries. They were lying on chairs.’

French media says that the man is of Moroccan descent and is 37 years old. It is also reported that he is known by police for previous crimes.

Mr Francou, said the girl had suffered a perforated lung and is being treated at Grenoble

Read more: http://metro.co.uk/2016/07/19/mother-and-three-daughters-stabbed-in-french-resort-for-being-scantily-dressed-6016072/#ixzz4Es0YfqeB