‍A French national suffered minor injuries after a man attacked him with a knife in Shanghai on Wednesday, local police confirmed via Weibo on Friday. 

Shanghai police said the Frenchman received neck injuries after receiving slight scrapes from a knife, after a Chinese man surnamed Mao - who was described as a "psychopath" by the police - attacked him with a small blade at noon on Wednesday.

Initial reports said the attacker had escaped with help from his Chinese friend, however, police said the attacker acted alone and was arrested later.

The Consulate General of France said ‍on Friday morning that a French national was “violently assaulted with a knife” in Shanghai, according to a statement posted on its official website.

The French embassy in China said it has been in contact with Chinese authorities. It also called for French people in China to be vigilant and said the priority for the embassy is to secure the safety of French nationals.

At a regular press briefing on Friday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang, in response to the incident, urged people not to make assumptions about the case as the investigation was still ongoing.