'Hero' Malian migrant granted French citizenship

By Hajer M'tiri

PARIS (AA) - A Malian migrant hailed as a hero in France after rescuing a child from falling from a fourth-floor balcony was awarded French citizenship on Monday in honor of his bravery.

A video of Mamoudou Gassama's spectacular rescue went viral on social media and has been viewed millions of times.

The footage shows Gassama, 22, single-handedly scaling the facade of a building, pulling himself up from balcony to balcony to reach in a few seconds the fourth floor, and reaching out with his right arm and hauling the dangling youngster to safety.

The incident took place at around 8:00 pm (1800 GMT) on Saturday in northern Paris. Gassama has since been called a national hero for his double heroism: risking his life as well as deportation. The public and media have also dubbed him “Spider-Man.”

After meeting him at the Elysee Palace, President Emmanuel Macron said Gassama would be made a naturalized citizen. He personally thanked him, gave him a medal for courage, and said he would also be made a fireman.

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo praised the young migrant on Twitter on Sunday for his "act of bravery" as well as phoning him personally to "thank him warmly".

"He explained to me that he had arrived from Mali a few months ago dreaming of building his life here."

"I told him that his heroic act is an example to all citizens and that the city of Paris will obviously be very keen to support him in his efforts to settle in France," she added.

Speaking to reporters, Gassama said he had acted without thinking.

"I saw all these people shouting, and cars honking their horns. I climbed up like that and, thank God, I saved the child," he said.

"I felt afraid when I saved the child... [when] we went into the living room, I started to shake, I could hardly stand up, I had to sit down," he added.

The French media reported that the father of the toddler was detained for alleged parental neglect.