French President To Meet U.S. Servicemen Who Tackled Train Attacker

French President Francois Hollande has invited the passengers who overpowered a gunman on a high-speed train traveling from Amsterdam to Paris on August 21 to visit the Elysee Palace.

Air Force serviceman Spencer Stone, Alek Skarlatos, a National Guardsman, and U.S. student Anthony Sadler are being hailed as heroes for tackling and disarming the gunman.

Stone was reportedly the first one to reach the gunman, who cut him in the neck and hand. The Pentagon said his injuries are not life-threatening.

They are due to be received "in the coming days," according to the French president’s office.

"I looked back and saw a guy enter with a Kalashnikov. My friends and I got down and then I said 'Let's get him'," Alek Skarlatos, a 22-year-old member of the National Guard, told France's BFMTV.

The American men and British consultant Chris Norman who helped disarm the gunman were given medals for bravery by the authorities in the French city of Arras.

The suspect is thought to be a 26-year-old Moroccan who had lived in Spain but had moved to Belgium in 2015. He was taken into custody by police in Arras, France.

He was also armed with an automatic pistol, nine cartridge clips, and a box-cutter.

Two passengers were injured during the incident and they have been hospitalized.

Based on reporting by AP, Reuters, AFP, and the BBC