This article is from the source 'independent' 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.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/charlie-hebdo-attack-seven-arrested-as-french-police-continue-manhunt-for-two-suspected-gunmen-9964137.html
The article has changed 18 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 4 | Version 5 |
|---|---|
| Charlie Hebdo attack: Suspects spotted at petrol station north of Paris | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The two Franco-Algerian brothers sought for the murderous attack on satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, which left 12 people dead, have been spotted in northern France. | The two Franco-Algerian brothers sought for the murderous attack on satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, which left 12 people dead, have been spotted in northern France. |
| A police source told the French news agency AFP that the brothers, Cherif and Said Kouachi, had robbed a petrol station near Villers-Cotterêt in the Aisne 70 miles north-east of Paris. | A police source told the French news agency AFP that the brothers, Cherif and Said Kouachi, had robbed a petrol station near Villers-Cotterêt in the Aisne 70 miles north-east of Paris. |
| An employee in the petrol station recognised the men as they ordered him to fill up a light grey Renault Clio, possibly the same vehicle that they hijacked after yesterday’s killings. Several shots were fired. | An employee in the petrol station recognised the men as they ordered him to fill up a light grey Renault Clio, possibly the same vehicle that they hijacked after yesterday’s killings. Several shots were fired. |
| The source told AFP that other weapons, including assault rifles, were clearly visible in the car. | The source told AFP that other weapons, including assault rifles, were clearly visible in the car. |
| The two men were last seen driving towards Paris on the N2 trunk road. Large forces of armed police were reported to be assembling at the edge of the French capital in case they attempted to enter the city. | The two men were last seen driving towards Paris on the N2 trunk road. Large forces of armed police were reported to be assembling at the edge of the French capital in case they attempted to enter the city. |
| By early afternoon, despite the presence of police helicopters, all trace of the suspected gunmen seemed to have been lost. A police source said they might have taken refuge in a village close to the petrol station that they robbed. | |
| Local people had been warned to stay at home. All outdoor school activities had been cancelled. | |
| Units of France’s two elite police squads – the Raid and the GIGN – were reported to be deploying in the Aisne region. Other heavily armed police squads were guarding all the main entrances to Paris from the north. | |
| A third man, earlier named as a suspect by police, handed himself in late last night. | A third man, earlier named as a suspect by police, handed himself in late last night. |
| Seven other individuals arrested overnight are thought to be associates or family of the suspects and were detained in the towns of Reims and Charleville-Mezieres, as well as in the Paris area. | Seven other individuals arrested overnight are thought to be associates or family of the suspects and were detained in the towns of Reims and Charleville-Mezieres, as well as in the Paris area. |
| Hamyd Mourad, 18, from the town of Charleville Mézières on the Belgian border, surrendered to police after seeing his name on social media yesterday. | Hamyd Mourad, 18, from the town of Charleville Mézières on the Belgian border, surrendered to police after seeing his name on social media yesterday. |
| Cherif and Said Kouachi, reportedly 32 and 34 | Cherif and Said Kouachi, reportedly 32 and 34 |
| Mr Mourad claims he was attending school at 11.30am yesterday when the attacks took place. Since he handed himself in, people purporting to be Mr Mourad's classmates are insisting that he was in school, with many using the hashtag #HamydMouradInnocent. | Mr Mourad claims he was attending school at 11.30am yesterday when the attacks took place. Since he handed himself in, people purporting to be Mr Mourad's classmates are insisting that he was in school, with many using the hashtag #HamydMouradInnocent. |
| News of the arrests comes as a female police officer was shot dead in a southern Paris suburb this morning. Officers claim it is too early to say whether the shooting was connected to yesterday's massacre. | News of the arrests comes as a female police officer was shot dead in a southern Paris suburb this morning. Officers claim it is too early to say whether the shooting was connected to yesterday's massacre. |
| Sky News reports claim among the recently arrested in relation to yesterday's attack is the brother-in-law of one of the two suspected gunmen. | Sky News reports claim among the recently arrested in relation to yesterday's attack is the brother-in-law of one of the two suspected gunmen. |
| The brothers Cherif and Said Kouachi are said to be “armed and dangerous”. | The brothers Cherif and Said Kouachi are said to be “armed and dangerous”. |
| Chérif, 32, was already known to security officials for a previous terror conviction. | Chérif, 32, was already known to security officials for a previous terror conviction. |
| He was jailed in 2008 for three years for seeking to join extremists in Iraq as part of a jihadist group which appeared to offer instruction in how to fire the Kalashnikov rifle – the weapon used in the Charlie Hebdo attack. | He was jailed in 2008 for three years for seeking to join extremists in Iraq as part of a jihadist group which appeared to offer instruction in how to fire the Kalashnikov rifle – the weapon used in the Charlie Hebdo attack. |
| The two brothers suspected of the attack are believed to be orphans of Algerian descent, raised in the city of Rennes in north west France. | The two brothers suspected of the attack are believed to be orphans of Algerian descent, raised in the city of Rennes in north west France. |
| One of the brothers' ID cards has reportedly been discovered in an abandoned getaway car used by the two, French website Le Point reported. | One of the brothers' ID cards has reportedly been discovered in an abandoned getaway car used by the two, French website Le Point reported. |
| Police have cordoned off a block of flats where one of the brothers was believed to have been living with his partner, | Police have cordoned off a block of flats where one of the brothers was believed to have been living with his partner, |
| France's Prime Minister Manuel Valls told RTL radio early this morning the two men were known to intelligence services and the fear that they could carry out another attack "is our main concern." | France's Prime Minister Manuel Valls told RTL radio early this morning the two men were known to intelligence services and the fear that they could carry out another attack "is our main concern." |
| A bullet impact is seen in a window of a building next to the French satirical magazine Bystanders told The Times that the gunmen told them they were from al-Qaeda in Yemen, also known as al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). | A bullet impact is seen in a window of a building next to the French satirical magazine Bystanders told The Times that the gunmen told them they were from al-Qaeda in Yemen, also known as al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). |
| The murder of nine journalists, two police officers and a maintenance man by masked men has shocked France. Around 11.30am two men forcibly entered the offices of the satirical magazine, where a weekly editorial meeting was taking place, and after compelling the journalists to identify themselves opened fire. They were late seen fleeing the building. | The murder of nine journalists, two police officers and a maintenance man by masked men has shocked France. Around 11.30am two men forcibly entered the offices of the satirical magazine, where a weekly editorial meeting was taking place, and after compelling the journalists to identify themselves opened fire. They were late seen fleeing the building. |
| A minute’s silence will be observed at 12pm (local time) across the country and the bells of Notre Dame will toll. In the UK police officers across the country are expected to also observed a moment of silence at 10.30GMT. | A minute’s silence will be observed at 12pm (local time) across the country and the bells of Notre Dame will toll. In the UK police officers across the country are expected to also observed a moment of silence at 10.30GMT. |
| Last night vigils were attended by thousands in Paris and hundreds in Berlin and London. | Last night vigils were attended by thousands in Paris and hundreds in Berlin and London. |
| French President François Hollande called the massacre “an act of exceptional barbarism," as UK Prime Minister David Cameron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and US president Barack Obama also condemned the actions of the attackers. | French President François Hollande called the massacre “an act of exceptional barbarism," as UK Prime Minister David Cameron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and US president Barack Obama also condemned the actions of the attackers. |