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Hunt for Charlie Hebdo gunmen
LIVE: French police corner Kouachi brothers
The scene at Dammartin-en-Goële, where the hostage situation was taking place on Friday.
LIVE: French police corner Kouachi brothers
Published: 09 Jan 2015 11:27 GMT+01:00
Updated: 09 Jan 2015 11:43 GMT+01:00

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Police were said to be negotiating with the two Charlie Hebdo suspects on Friday morning after they reportedly took a hostage and are holed up in a printing firm to the north east of Paris.


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Latest:

BREAKING - Hostage situation underway to north east of Paris
Kouachi brothers believedto be holed up at printing firm
Contrary to reports, no one has been killed
1,500 police sent to the scene
11:42 - Teachers trying to keep school children calm






11:38 - Suspects "prepared to die as martyrs"

This is unconfirmed but we are hearing the suspects have told French police they are "prepared to die as martyrs".

Analysts suggest the police would have expected to be told something along those lines and it may play into the hands of authorities who will want to draw the situation out as long as possible in the hope they can negotiate a peaceful end.

11:33 - Elite French forces publish photos of operation

THe GIPN (Groupes d'intervention de la Police Nationale) unit, which is one of the elite units on the scene this morning as published photos of the operation to "neutralise" the Kouachi brothers.


11:28 - Hospital staff being mobilised

Le Monde cites a hospital spokesman who says hospitals in the area have been placed on “pre-alert, in the case there are any victims. We’re in the midst of organising ourselves internally, verifying reception capacity, to transfer patients..”

“But at the moment we have no further information on whether there are any people injured or not”.


Background

Cherif Kouachi, the 32-year-old hunted along with his older brother Said for the attack on satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo is a jihadist who has been well-known to anti-terror police for many years.

Cherif, who was born on November 28th, 1982 in Paris not far from where the attack took place, had already been jailed in 2008 for his role in sending fighters to Iraq.

Sometimes going by the name Abu Issen, he was part of the "Buttes-Chaumont network" led by Farid Benyettou, that helped send would-be jihadists to join Al Qaeda in Iraq during the US-led invasion in the mid-2000s.

He was arrested just before he was due to fly to Syria and on to Iraq -- and was later sentenced to three years in prison, including an 18-month suspended sentence.

Two years later, his name was cited in a police report related to the attempted prison escape of Smain Ait Ali Belkacem, a former member of the Algerian Armed Islamic Group (GIA) that carried out a spate of bombings and a plane hijacking in France in the 1990s.

Belkacem was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2002 for a bombing at the Musee D'Orsay rail station in Paris in October 1995 that left 30 injured.

Cherif Kouachi was also suspected of being close to another key French jihadist, Djamel Beghal, who spent 10 years in prison for planning attacks.

They were suspected of participating in militant training programmes together, although charges in this case were dropped against Kouachi.

Armed and dangerous

With a shaved head and sparse goatee in the photo sent out by police, Cherif Kouachi is considered "armed and dangerous".

His brother Said was born on September 7th, 1980, also in Paris. His photo shows him with brown eyes, lightly bearded with short brown hair.

Their presumed accomplice, who handed himself into police in northeastern France was identified as Mourad Hamyd, the 18-year-old step-brother of Cherif Kouachi.

He is suspected of helping the two brothers in the attack, with one witness saying a third man was in the car when they made their getaway.

Hamyd presented himself to police in the town of Charleville-Mezieres "after seeing his name on social networks", a source close to the investigation told AFP.

Several of his school friends had taken to Twitter saying he had been in class with them at the time of the attack, using the hashtag

Police were said to be negotiating with the two Charlie Hebdo suspects on Friday morning after they reportedly took a hostage and are holed up in a printing firm to the north east of Paris.

Latest:

BREAKING - Hostage situation underway to north east of Paris
Kouachi brothers believedto be holed up at printing firm
Contrary to reports, no one has been killed
1,500 police sent to the scene
11:21 – Hollande calls on French to unify

“Operations are under way,” the president said during his press conference held at the Elyseé Palace

“I’ve called on the nation to remain unified. We’re a country with many different beliefs. But unity does not mean uniformity. Unity means respect for diversity.”


11:24 - All roads blocked around village
This photo has been sent in by our freelance reporter at the scene in Dammartin-en-Goële.

11:19 - School children locked inside 'we are all scared'

As we reported before children in three schools in the village of Dammartin-en-Goële have been locked inside for their own safety.

One of the children has been quoted in French media:

He said: "We have all called our parents to make sure they are ok. We've been told we have to stay inside. All the lights have been switched off. We are all scared."

11:15 – ‘Everyone is confined’

Carole Morais, a town hall employee at Dammartin-en-Goële, tells Le Monde: “We’re stuck, everyone is confined… We’re following (the events) on the Internet”.
11:05 - 'Frenzy of police activity'

One of The Local's freelance reporters is on the scene at Dammartin-en-Goële and had this to say:

There's a huge frenzy of police activity, with dozens of police cars and vans coming and going. The village has been completely sealed off by police, with all roads leading to Dammartin-en-Goële having been closed.

There are huge numbers of police holding assault rifles around the building where the Kouachi brothers are holed up along with their hostage.

11:03 - 'We've locked the doors'

A secretary working at a local doctor’s office near where the hostage crisis is taking place tells L’Express that her company has closed the blinds and locked the doors. “I have chills, I don’t feel safe,” she says, adding that she can hear the helicopters “just keep on hovering”.
10:54 - Summary of situation so far from AFP

Two brothers suspected of slaughtering 12 people in an unprecedented jihadist attack in France held one person hostage on Friday as police cornered the gunmen northeast of the capital.

The hostage drama unfolded at a printing business in the small town of Dammartin-en-Goele, only 12 kilometres (seven miles) from Paris's main Charles de Gaulle airport, police sources said.

Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve confirmed that an operation was under way to "neutralise" the suspects as the massive manhunt appeared to be reaching a dramatic climax with helicopters buzzing overhead.

Prior to the standoff, the suspects had hijacked a Peugeot 206 nearby from a woman who said she recognised them as the brothers, Cherif and Said Kouachi, accused of killing 12 people in Wednesday's attack on the satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo, which repeatedly lampooned the Prophet Mohammed.

The attack was France's deadliest bloodbath in half a century.

Prosecutors told AFP there had been no casualties in the shoot-out.


10 :51 – Second shooting suspect identified

Reports claim that the suspect who on Thursday shot and killed a policewoman in the southern Parisian suburb of Montrouge has been identified and that two people close to the suspect have been brought in for questioning.


10:50 - Media and public told to stay away

Security forces are asking the public and the media to stay away from the scene where the hostages are being held, asking journalists not to film the location.

10:48 - Helicopters hovering over head
As many as five police helicopters are in the air over the village of Dammartin-en-Goële with specialist elite forces.

There were earlier unconfirmed reportsthat the Kouachi brothers fired on one of the helicopters.

10:35 - Around 1,500 police and elite forces being sent to the scene

Here's some images from Dammartin-en-Goële this morning, where a huge operation was underway to neutralise the suspects.

This is the building where the Kouachi brothers are believed to be holding a hostage.



10:34 - Interior Minister says operation underway

A police operation is underway to "neutralise" the two suspects in this week's massacre of 12 people in Paris at a satirical magazine, French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said Friday.

"An operation is underway which is set to neutralise the perpetrators of the cowardly attack carried out two days ago," he said in a televised statement.

10:31 - Flights diverted from Charles de Gaulle Airport

We are hearing that two planes heading to Charles de Gaulle have been diverted. That's probably due to the number of helicopters in the air above Dammartin-en-Goële, which is only five minutes from the main Paris airport.

10:22 - Prosecutors deny any casualties in hostage crisis

Earlier reports from French media said that two people had died and 20 were injured in an exchange of gunfire between police and the Kouachi brothers.

10:22 - Operation to 'neutralise' suspects, minister says

This is the business where the hostage situation is believed to be underway. It's a printing firm called CTD, where reports say five people are said to work.





10:18 - LIVE images from SKY TV

If you want to see images of the unfolding situation, see below.



10:14 - Schools closed in the village, children locked inside

The village of Dammartin-en-Goële is in lockdown, with children in the three schools being kept inside locked school doors for their own protection.

Varying reports on the number of casualties. We cannot confirm any officially as of yet.

In terms of the number of hostages taken, most reports say one person is being held by the two Kouachi brothers.

10:09 - Police have begun negotiations with suspects

The suspects have bee identified as the wanted Kouachi brothers.

The latest is that one person is still being held hostage by suspects. Negotiations have begun.

10:00 - "TWO dead, 20 injured"

According to Le Parisien two people have died and 20 people have been injured following an exchange of gunfire between police and the two suspects.

09:52 - Police swarm the area around Dammartin-en-Goële

This is where the hostage-taking is believed to have occurred this morning in the village of Dammartin-en-Goële.

Elite commando forces are on the scene as well as three helicopters over head.



09:42 - Suspects are holed up in a business in Dammartin-en-Goële

Numerous sources are now reporting that there is a hostage situation underway after the two suspects, believed to be the Kouachi brothers, entered a business in the village of Dammartin-en-Goële, to the north east of Paris.

They are believed to have taken hostages in a company called CTD (Creation Tendance Decouverte), which do comunications and design.

09:39 - Reports that hostages have been taken

Latest reports claim the two suspects being chased by police, may have taken hostages and are holed up in some kind of company offices in the village of Dammartin-en-Goële.

These are unconfirmed reports. And it is still not clear with this incident is connected to the hunt for the Charlie Hebdo suspects.

09:35 - Police involved in car chase with two suspects

We are hearing that a Police have been involved in a car chase with two suspects on the Route Nationale 2 in the SEine et Marne department after they stole a Peugeot 206 car this morning.

It is not been confirmed these are the Kouachi brothers the police have been hunting, but bearing in mind the chase as well as the shooting in the village of Dammartin-en-Goële is not far from where police were hunting the suspects yesterday, it's highly likely that it is their chief suspects for the Charlie Hebdo massacre.

09:23 - BREAKING - 'Shots fired' in Seine et Marne area east of Paris

Reports coming out this morning say shots have been fired in the village Dammartin-en-Goële, in the Seine-et-Marne department to the north east of Paris.

BFM TV say there has also been a carjacking by two suspects before being chased by police.



09:11 - "I saw horror" -survivor tells of attack

Charlie Hebdo journalist Laurent Leger, who was at Charlie Hebdo's offices at the time of the attack has been speaking of the horror he witnessed.

This is from AFP:

He said the gunman called out "Charb!" the name of editor-in-chief and cartoonist Stephane Charbonnier who was living under police protection after receiving death threats for the magazine's provocative content mocking Islam.

"And then the shooting started, the smell of gunpowder... by chance I threw myself behind the table and he didn't see me ... a few seconds, and everyone was on the ground," he said, adding the gunman had shot at random.

Leger said that as the satirical Charlie Hebdo team were "jokers", he at first thought it may be some kind of a prank.

But the reality quickly sank in as the sharp sting of gunpowder hit his nose and one by one his colleagues crumpled to the ground.

Helpless, the veteran reporter huddled tightly in his hiding place.

"I saw the others on the ground, the sound of explosions, then suddenly there was silence. A long silence."

"I saw a lot of blood, I saw half the editorial team on the ground," he said. "I saw horror."

"I still don't know how I managed to escape."

08:30 - Counter-terrorist officers pick up search

Overnight searches by elite forces in a series of villages around 70 km to the north east of Paris have proved fruitless, with the two suspects continuing to evade detection.

Suspects Cherif Kouachi and his brother Said, remain on the run despite a huge security operation in PAris and throughout FRance, involving tens of thousands of officers.

Those elite officers picked up the search once again early on Friday in the area between Villers-Cotterêts and Soissons.

This is the same area as where the search was focussed on Thursday. It's near to where the suspects are said to have robbed a garage before dumping their getaway car.

08:25 - Muslim leaders to denounce the attack

Friday was expected to see Muslim faithful attending prayers across France after the head of the French Muslim Council called on people to gather "in dignity and silence", and urged imams to condemn "violence and terrorism".

08:20 - "Jihadists planning mass attacks against the west"

The manhunt came as the head of Britain's domestic spy agency MI5 warned that Islamist militants were planning other "mass casualty attacks against the West" and that intelligence services may be powerless to stop them.

Overnight developments

"Vive la France"

US President Barack Obama was the latest to sign a book of condolence in Washington with the message "Vive la France!" as thousands gathered in Paris on a day of national mourning Thursday, and the Eiffel Tower dimmed its lights to honour the dead.

One brother trained with Al-Qaeda in Yemen

One of the two brothers suspected of carrying out the deadly attack on French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo is believed to have trained with Al-Qaeda in Yemen, a US official said Thursday.

Another US official told AFP that Cherif and Said Kouachi, who are suspected of killing 12 people on Wednesday in the magazine's Paris headquarters, had been on a US terror watch list "for years."

France's Justic Minister Christiane Taubira also told CNN that one of the brothers had been to Yemen, but did not specify which one.

The brothers, who were still on the run late Thursday, were both flagged in a US database as terror suspects, and also on the no-fly list, meaning they were barred from flying into the United States.

The first official told AFP that according to French intelligence, Said Kouachi traveled to Yemen in 2011, where he received training from Al-Qaeda's affiliate there in small arms combat and marksmanship.

Start looking in the other direction!

Yes I can!

Yes! To your question.

Hmm

Hazardd:
whether he reject his baby mama or not,the child still remains his as long as he is catering for her from day 1 to 5years.

The child remains theirs. Children do better with their parents, if not both then d mother can take care of d child.

I will thank God, another temptation passed!

Nice

Nice

Go and use train! Those seven buses na 8 coaches on the train...

iseleiyanu:
I'm d fool here, my tot was I could change her cheating attitudes, she ve cheated on me like 3 times tot I could change her
But her parents are now aware of d whole story.

Trust you cannot change such people. I am sure you forgave her because you were scared of loosing her, but such people are not worth keeping, unless you wan die quick!

iseleiyanu:
what abt d cheating attitudes

according to you, you knew and did nothing until she got pregnant. So u better continue to deal with it as you were doing before.

Agimor:
Why bite what you won't chew?

he wanted to chew but it choked him!

Where d house fa?

i Try

Why are they campaigning in Lagos alone as if they will be president of Lagos! By now they should move to south east and gain small ground there... You can't just write them off!

Let them write To the military board to obtain the credential. By the way this is d third time he is contesting, shouldn't they have his credentials by now? What of d person wey him own burn, they no query am.

I det come.

Nice

She might be a virgin, but the Russian will not hold himself just for her. So we can conclude that she is no more a virgin or on the verge if loosing her virginity.

That yansh fit hold bottle!

Nice watch, I will like to buy one for my next babe!

if you are the one, say "YAY".

tellmoon:
If U ask me, I believe this is not unconnected with our refusal to sign the gay law... my thought anyway.

That is shallow assumption. Saudi will not consider ghe law, yet they still import from there, and the relationship between both countries is strong. The problem is that the Nigerian govt have no negotiating leverage, imagine Mr President going to America to beg them yo do his job. No one would have respect for such person or d people they represent. We need to bukld our National image, to a respectable level, reduce corruption. The US govt probably felt that proceeds from oil sales do not benefit the Nigerian populace but just d politicians so why buy from such country. They were faced with who to drop ( due to the reasons given: increase in local production ), Nigeria was the weakest trade partner so they dropped her.

Good write up.

echobee:
Mind your business . No matter how far lies runs,one day truth go catch am. Dont be d reason for their break up . Shalom

He is not the reason for their breakup. Its her dishonest attitude that is d reason for their breakup.

Merry Christmas to NLanders!

Stomach infrastructure!

Amen

Why are they selling the form? This is pure Bull S#! T.

Same way Jonathan's choice is causing anti Buhari sentiment in the south east.