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Three Americans Foil Terror Attempt on French Train

Passengers recount harrowing experience.

Three Americans praised for thwarting a  terror attack on a French train, spoke out for the first time at a press conference Sunday. The childhood friends were traveling from Paris to Amsterdam when a shooting suspect opened fire injuring three, before being tackled by the trio.

Alex Skarlatos, Spencer Stone, and Anthony Sadler recounted how they sprung into action to restrain the shooter. Two of three are U.S. servicemen, one is in the U.S. Air Force, while the other belongs to the National Guard, reports CBS News.

"I saw a guy entering the train with an AK and a handgun, and I just looked over at Spencer and said, 'Let's go. Go,'" said Skarlatos, a 22-year-old National Guardsman. "And he jumped up, and I followed behind him by about three seconds."

A British man was also named among the men who helped take down the gunman. “He seemed like he was ready to fight to the end,” recalled Stone. “So were we.”

The 26-year-old Moroccan suspect, Ayoub el-Khazzani, has been linked to radical Islamic groups. French authorities say Khazzani had an assault riffle, a box cutter, a pistol, and extra ammunition. 

Khazzani, who was taken into custody for questioning, denies a terrorist attempt. "He is dumbfounded that his act is being linked to terrorism," his lawyer said. ”He says that by chance he found a suitcase with a weapon, with a telephone, hidden away.”     

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(Photo: Thomas Samson/AFP/Getty Images)

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