This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/blog/2012/mar/21/france-shooting-toulouse-police-suspects-jewish-school-raid

The article has changed 36 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Toulouse shootings: police arrest man and corner suspect in early swoop - live updates Toulouse shootings: police arrest man and corner suspect in early swoop - live updates
(40 minutes later)
8.25am: Reuters reports that the 24-year-old suspect threw his pistol from the window of the house in exhange for a "communication device". But according to Guéant, he still has an arsenal including an Uzi sub-machine gun and a Kalashnikov assault rifle.
"He said … he will turn himself in this afternoon," Gueant told BFM television, adding that authorities were determined to take the suspect alive so he could stand trial.
8.18am: Claude Guéant, the French interior minister, says the suspect has announced that he will turn himself in sometime in afternoon. But it also appears that the man, who threw a pistol out of the window a little while ago, has other weapons around him.
8.15am: According to Le Monde, officers from the French police's counter terrorism unit, Raid (which stands for Recherche, Assistance, Intervention, Dissuasion - or Research, Assistance, Intervention, Deterrence) are conducting today's operation.
8.10am: According to the BBC, who are quoting the French interior minister, Claude Guéant, the suspect is negotiating with police and has thrown a Colt 45 pistol out of the window (police have previosuly identified a .45 calibre pistol as a weapon used in all three attacks).
7.57am: As Reuters points out, immigration and Islam have been major themes of the election campaign as Sarkozy tries to woo supporters of the far-right leader Marine Le Pen.
Analysts say the shootings could transform the election debate and possibly tone down the populist rhetoric.
Jean Marc, a 56-year-old restaurant owner in the city who declined to give his last name, said he believed the crisis would benefit the far right or Sarkozy in the election.

"The Socialists don't talk about this stuff and it shows they don't know what they are doing. [The police] need to get this guy."
7.54am: A police source has told Reuters that officers could launch an assault if the standoff lasts for some time, adding:
"There are more and more people around, so this creates a dangerous situation."
7.51am: The wires are also reporting that a package bomb has exploded at the Indonesian Embassy in Paris today, causing minor damage but no injuries.
A Paris police official said an employee at the embassy discovered a suspicious package and stepped back in time before exploded. There was minor damage to a window but no injuries, the official said.
Indonesia's foreign minister, Marty Natalegawa, says it is too early to say whether there is any link between the mail bomb and the attack on the Jewish school in Toulouse. (Via AP)
7.48am: Here's some background from AP:7.48am: Here's some background from AP:
For years the main terrorist threat that French authorities have been concerned about has been al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, which grew from an extremist group in the former French colony of Algeria.For years the main terrorist threat that French authorities have been concerned about has been al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, which grew from an extremist group in the former French colony of Algeria.
French officials have been worried that the group may try to conduct an action in France ahead of presidential elections in April and May, a counterterrorism official told the Associated Press this week. So far, it has never succeeded in reaching across the Mediterranean Sea to strike in Europe.French officials have been worried that the group may try to conduct an action in France ahead of presidential elections in April and May, a counterterrorism official told the Associated Press this week. So far, it has never succeeded in reaching across the Mediterranean Sea to strike in Europe.
While the Toulouse raid was under way, the bodies of the four victims of the school shooting arrived in Israel for burial. The bodies of the rabbi, two of his children and a daughter of the school's principal were accompanied to Israel by French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe. They landed early today.While the Toulouse raid was under way, the bodies of the four victims of the school shooting arrived in Israel for burial. The bodies of the rabbi, two of his children and a daughter of the school's principal were accompanied to Israel by French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe. They landed early today.
7.43am: The scale of the police response is, understandably, huge. Angelique has spoken to a police trade union rep on the ground, who's told her that at least 300 police are involved in the operation7.43am: The scale of the police response is, understandably, huge. Angelique has spoken to a police trade union rep on the ground, who's told her that at least 300 police are involved in the operation
7.41am: Angelique adds:7.41am: Angelique adds:
In a neighbouring street to the stand off, Marc Stulman, local general secretary of the Jewish umbrella group, the Crif, said he had been briefed by the interior minister 20 mins ago.In a neighbouring street to the stand off, Marc Stulman, local general secretary of the Jewish umbrella group, the Crif, said he had been briefed by the interior minister 20 mins ago.
He said the suspect is still holed up in his home and that there had been an exchange of gunfire this morning. He added there was "immense relief" in Toulouse this morning that police had located the suspect:He said the suspect is still holed up in his home and that there had been an exchange of gunfire this morning. He added there was "immense relief" in Toulouse this morning that police had located the suspect:
People can go to school this morning as normal. And we hope tomorrow will be a better day." "People can go to school this morning as normal. And we hope tomorrow will be a better day."
7.37am: The Guardian's Paris correspondent, Angelique Chrisafis has just sent this dispatch from Toulouse:7.37am: The Guardian's Paris correspondent, Angelique Chrisafis has just sent this dispatch from Toulouse:
On the leafy neighbouring streets, lined with smart houses with front gardens, residents were in shock. One local said he had spoken by phone to the couple who lived in the flat directly opposite the suspect. He said:On the leafy neighbouring streets, lined with smart houses with front gardens, residents were in shock. One local said he had spoken by phone to the couple who lived in the flat directly opposite the suspect. He said:
They don't know what's going on, they are in their bedroom hiding under their bed, terrified. Just after 3am they heard a commotion, the man shouted down to the police 'I have seen you!' and began firing a gun. They don't know the man well, they said they just used to pass him on the stairwell."They don't know what's going on, they are in their bedroom hiding under their bed, terrified. Just after 3am they heard a commotion, the man shouted down to the police 'I have seen you!' and began firing a gun. They don't know the man well, they said they just used to pass him on the stairwell."
7.34am: Good morning. People are waking up to the news that a man has been arrested over the Toulouse shootings while another is engaged in an armed stand-off with police. Three officers were injured in a shoot-out during the swoop on a house in Toulouse on Wednesday morning, police said.7.34am: Good morning. People are waking up to the news that a man has been arrested over the Toulouse shootings while another is engaged in an armed stand-off with police. Three officers were injured in a shoot-out during the swoop on a house in Toulouse on Wednesday morning, police said.
Reports quoted police as saying the man barricaded inside the house had told them he wanted to avenge the deaths of Palestinian children. He was described as a French national with an Algerian mother. The suspect already arrested is said to be his brother.Reports quoted police as saying the man barricaded inside the house had told them he wanted to avenge the deaths of Palestinian children. He was described as a French national with an Algerian mother. The suspect already arrested is said to be his brother.
Heavily armed police in bullet-proof vests and helmets cordoned off the residential area where the raid was taking place. Witnesses at the scene heard several shots at about 3.40am local time.Heavily armed police in bullet-proof vests and helmets cordoned off the residential area where the raid was taking place. Witnesses at the scene heard several shots at about 3.40am local time.