Paris attack: police shot dead

A shooting in southern Paris has wounded a French officer, a day after an attack on satirical Charlie Hebdo.

Twelve people including two police officers are killed in a shooting at the Paris offices of the satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo. Mana Rabiee reports.

Masked gunman run towards a victim of their gun fire outside the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo's office. (AP Photo) NO SALES Source: AP

A POLICEWOMAN has died in a shootout and a street sweeper was gravely wounded at the southern edge of Paris, raising tensions a day after masked gunmen stormed the offices of a satirical newspaper and killed 12 people.

The attacker in the pre-dawn shooting, who wore a bullet-proof vest, remains at large, according to French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve. He cautioned against jumping to any conclusions about the attack, which has not been linked to the assault on the newspaper Charlie Hebdo, which left two police officers among the dead.

In the Thursday shooting, he said the officer had stopped to investigate a traffic accident when the firing started. Paris police said the second victim was a street sweeper.

"There was an officer in front of a white car and a man running away who shot," said Ahmed Sassi, who saw the shooting from his home nearby.

He said the shooter wore dark clothes but no mask. "It didn't look like a big gun because he held it with one hand," Sassi said.

Cazeneuve left an emergency government meeting to travel to the scene of Thursday's shooting. France is on its highest level of alert after the deadly attacks at Charlie Hebdo's central Paris offices.

Rescue service workers and firefighters evacuate an injured person on a stretcher near the site of a shooting in Montrouge, south of Paris. Picture: AFP PHOTO / THOMAS SAMSON Source: AFP

Police initially said the two victims were critical, but Cazeneuve said just the policewoman was fighting for her life.

The incident comes on a day of mourning in France after Islamist gunmen stormed the office of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo on Wednesday, killing eight journalists, two police and two others.

The men are still thought to be on the run, and there has so far been no claim of responsibility for the massacre that has deeply shocked France.

Interior Minister Berbard Cazeneuve said authorities were doing their utmost to identify and arrest the attacker, and he cautioned against jumping to conclusions, a day after the Charlie Hebdo attack.

Rescue service workers and firefighters tend to injured people in the second Paris shooting. Picture: AFP PHOTO / THOMAS SAMSON Source: AFP

Paris police said it was too early to draw any connection between the shootings. France is on its highest level of alert.

The shootout comes after French Prime Minister Manuel Valls says there were "several arrests" overnight in the hunt for two suspects in the deadly shooting at the satirical Charlie Hebdo newspaper.

In an interview with RTL radio, Valls said preventing another attack "is our main concern," as he explained why authorities released photos of the two men along with a plea for witnesses to come forward.

France declared a national day of mourning on Thursday.

POLICE COMB PARIS IN HUNT FOR GUNMEN

Police scour Reims in a frantic and so far fruitless search for two brothers suspected of carrying out the attack on French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, killing 12. Source: AFP

Thousands of French police are combing Reims and surrounding cities in a frantic — and so far fruitless — search for two brothers wanted over the country's deadliest terrorist attack in more than 50 years.

Police have warned the public that brothers Cherif and Said Kouachi are "armed and dangerous" and officers have released an emergency number to call if they are seen.

The Paris-born brothers of Algerian descent are suspected of storming the offices of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo and killing 12 people using AK-47s and a rocket launcher.

Eleven others were injured, four of them critically — including one staffer with an Australian girlfriend. She has flown to Paris to be by his side.

French national police intervention group officers gather at Charleville Mezieres police station during a massive manhunt for the Kouachi brothers. Source: AFP

The interior ministry has dispatched photographs of the brothers and placed security services on high alert nationwide as the suspects continue to elude capture.

French newspaper Liberation described "frantic activity long into the night" as elite police and national security services officers raided a string of addresses in Reims, Charleville-Mezieres and surrounding cities.

A third suspect, 18-year-old Hamyd Mourad, turned himself in at a police station in Charleville-Mezieres, reportedly after seeing his name circulated on social media.

He is believed to be an accomplice in the attack.

Soon after the attack, a Twitter campaign declaring Mourad's innocence was initiated by people purporting to be his classmates, leading to #mouradhamydisinnocent trending in France.

TWO INJURED IN SECOND SHOOTING

A shooting in southern Paris has wounded a French officer, a day after an attack on satirical Charlie Hebdo.

VICTIM HAS AUSSIE GIRLFRIEND

Maisie and Simon in a photograph posted on Facebook this morning Source: Supplied

Meanwhile, the Australian girlfriend of a journalist injured in the attack on French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo has flown to Paris to be by his side.

Masie Dubosarsky, 27, received an email from partner Simon Fieschi at 10.39am Paris time, just minutes before three Islamic militants armed with AK-47s and a rocket launcher stormed the magazine's offices.

It is understood Mr Fieschi has been placed in an induced coma after being shot in the shoulder. There are now fears he may not walk again after doctors discovered the injury was worse than initially thought, with the bullet ricocheting off his spine and puncturing a lung.

Maisie has been inundated with messages of support on her Facebook page, where she has also posted a Je Suis Charlie' sign. Source: Supplied

Ms Dubosarsky is a writer and editor and the daughter of award-winning children's author Ursula Dubosarsky.

She met 31-year-old Mr Fieschi, 31, through a mutual friend during a working holiday in France about a year and a half ago. He started working as Charlie Hebdo's social media editor in 2011, not long after its offices were firebombed by extremists in retaliation for a cartoon satirising the prophet Mohammed. He had started work at the magazine shortly after its offices were destroyed by a petrol bomb in November 2011, in retaliation for an issue satirising Islam.

YOUNGEST SUSPECT SURRENDERS

The youngest of three suspected terrorists believed to be responsible for killing at least 12 people in the attack on a French satirical magazine has handed himself in, French police sources have said.

France's elite anti-terrorism unit is believed to have cornered the terrorists at a property in the north-eastern city of Reims.

Earlier, a member of the unit hinted at a possible bloody outcome saying: "There will be a showdown", as heavily armed officers surrounded the property following a massive manhunt after the offenders fled Charlie Hebdo newspaper's Paris headquarters after gunning down 12 people.

Police surround a property in Reims which is believed to have been used by the three suspects in the Charlie Hebdo massacre Source: Supplied

The surrounded property is an apartment block in the Reims suburb known as Croix-Rouge Source: AFP

Residents wait outside as French police search the building for evidence relating to the Charlie Hebdo terrorist attack Source: AFP

Police have named Said Kouachi, 34, Cherif Kouachi, 32, and Hamyd Mourad, 18, as the three gunmen suspected of carrying out the attack.

It is understood French police discovered who the attackers were after finding an identity card in an abandoned getaway car.

Mourad surrendered to police a few hours ago while the Kouachi brothers remain are still at large.

French police have released new photographs of the wanted brothers: Cherif Kouachi (left) 32 and Said Kouachi, 34. Source: AFP

French magazine Le Point is reporting the two brothers had returned to France from Syria last month, and had ties to an Iraqi network in Paris encouraging young men to join militants in Iraq.

Cherif may have served prison time in 2008 for involvement in an Iraqi jihadist group operating out of France.

Masked gunman run towards a victim of their gun fire outside the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo's office, in Paris. (AP Photo) NO SALES Source: AP

Violent ... armed gunmen face police officers near the offices of the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo. Picture: AFP/Anne Gelbard Source: News Corp Australia

Scene ... two of the gunmen who opened fire at French newspaper Charlie Hebdo in Paris. Picture: Live Leak Source Source: News Corp Australia

HOW THE SHOOTING UNFOLDED

Armed with Kalashnikovs and a rocket-launcher, two gunmen, claiming to be affiliated with al-Qaeda, stormed the satirical paper's office about 11.30am on Wednesday (9.30pm AEDT Wednesday) shouting "we have avenged the Prophet" and "Allahu Akbar" (Allah is the greatest) as they fired.

MORE: The victims of Charlie Hebdo terror attack

MORE: Newspaper gunmen 'on the loose'

MORE: What to know about Charlie Hebdo

The gunmen headed to the second floor editorial department where staff were holding their daily meeting and asked people who they were before shooting.

Terrified staff scattered, with some seeking refuge on the roof as the attack went on for five to 10 minutes before the gunmen managed to escape.

After being called out by name and executed in front of colleagues, ten staff members were gunned down and a police officer was also shot dead before the offenders fled in a getaway car where a third man was waiting.

Driving to Porte de Pantin in northeast Paris where they abandoned the first car and hijacked another, the three gunman emerged from their getaway vehicle to casually injure and execute a French policeman.

Sickening moments before gunmen shoot one of 12 victims during a terror attack on a French satirical magazine. Source: LiveLeak

The escape prompted a huge manhunt with 3000 police are scouring the city in search of the terrorists as French President Francois Hollande described the bloodbath as an "undoubtedly terrorist act."

Police are now conducting France anti-terror raids in the north-eastern city of Reims as part of their search for the terrorists.

'A REAL SLAUGHTER': WITNESSES DESCRIBE ATTACK

Rocco Contento, spokesman for the Unite police union, said the attackers exchanged gunfire with

"They opened fire on everyone, it was butchery, a real slaughter," Mr Conteno has told the daily Libération.

"Some of the people there took refuge up on the roof. The attackers then emerged, and there was a shootout with police."

Mr Contento added that the Charlie Hebdo offices had increased its security in recent weeks following renewed threats against the paper.

The contentious newspaper has drawn repeated threats for its controversial caricatures and was firebombed in 2011 in response to a satirical cartoon of the Prophet Mohammed.

In videos posted from scenes of the attack, the gunmen can be heard yelling "Allahu Akbar" as gunshots fire.

WARNING: GRAPHIC VIDEO

Witness Corinne Rey told L'Humanite she was forced to let the attackers into the building, and they claimed to be from al-Qaeda.

"I had gone to pick up my daughter from daycare. Arriving at the door of the newspaper building, two hooded and armed men brutally threatened us," she said.

"They wanted to enter, go up. I typed the code. They shot Wolinski, Cabu ... it lasted five minutes ... I had taken refuge under a desk ... They spoke French perfectly ... claiming to be al-Qaeda."

MANHUNT: Newspaper gunmen 'on the loose'

CHARM: 'I'd rather die standing than live on my knees'

Australian journalist Amanda Morrow, who lives near the Charlie Hebdo offices, told News Corp Australia that even two hours after the attack, emergency vehicles were still streaming to the site.

Ms Morrow, who has worked for Radio France International for six years and, incidentally, is due to give birth today, said she was not surprised by the attack.

"If you live anywhere near Charlie Hebdo, which has continually printed cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad, you know that it is always going to be a target," she said. "Paris is no stranger to these sorts of attacks, there has been a lot of animosity between Jews and Muslims."

French soldiers patrol the Eiffel Tower in Paris as the capital was placed under the highest alert status. Picture: Joel Saget Source: AFP

Investigation ... French police and forensic experts examine the car used by armed gunmen who stormed the Paris offices of Charlie Hebdo. Picture: AFP/Getty Images Source: AFP

Damage ... a police car riddled with bullets. Picture: AFP Source: AFP

Massive manhunt

The gunmen's escape prompted a massive manhunt with about 3000 police officers scouring the streets of Paris for hours following the attack.

Police are forensically examining the abandoned black Citroen getaway car, which was found in the nearby 19th district in north-eastern Paris.

Liberation is reporting three suspects aged 18, 32, and 34, two of them believed to be brothers, have been arrested.

According to MetroNews, police have identified the men as Said and Cherif K, brothers born in the 10th arrondissement of Paris, and Hamyd M, the 18-year-old, whose nationality is not yet known.

French Prime Minister Manuel Valls (centre) arrives at the offices of the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo. Picture: Getty Images Source: Getty Images

A police officer stands next to the bicycle of a police officer who was hit by a car near the shell of a bullet (bottom R) not far from the offices of the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo. Picture: Philippe Dupeyrat Source: AFP

People hug each other outside Charlie Hebdo's office. Picture: Remy de la Mauviniere Source: AP

French far-left leader Jean-Luc Melenchon reacts outside of the headquarters of Charlie Hebdo. Picture: Kenzo Tribouillard Source: AFP

A woman cries outside the headquarters of Charlie Hebdo. Picture: Kenzo Tribouillard Source: AFP

Victims

Two police officers and 10 newspaper staff are among at least 12 killed in the attack.

Police said 11 are injured, four critically.

French media have named five of the victims: controversial cartoonist and editor Stephane Charbonnier, known as "Charb"; cartoonists Jean Cabut, Georges Wolinski and Bernard 'Tignous' Verlhac; and economist and writer Bernard Maris.

Victims ... Charlie Hebdo staff killed in the attack include (clockwise from top left) cartoonist Jean Cabut, aka Cabu, cartoonist Tignous, Georges Wolinski and publisher Charb. Picture: AFP Source: AFP

Charbonnier, 47, faced constant threats over the controversial publication, and once famously said: "I'd prefer to die standing than live on my knees."

He appeared in a 2013 Wanted Dead or Alive for Crimes Against Islam article published by Inspire, the terrorist propaganda magazine published by al-Qaeda.

The magazine's editor-in-chief, Gerard Biard, was in London at the time of the attack.

"I don't understand how people can attack a newspaper with heavy weapons. A newspaper is not a weapon of war," he told France Inter.

It has been reported the gunmen asked for the cartoonists by name before killing them.

Thousands of tributes to the cartoonists have appeared online with the hashtag Je Suis Charlie, which means "I am Charlie."

Killed ... writer Bernard Maris was murdered in the attack. Picture: AFP Source: AFP

Staff ... members of the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo pictured in 2006, including cartoonists Cabu (L), Charb (2nd L), Tignous (4th L) and Honore (5th L) posing in front of the then headquarters of the weekly in Paris. Picture: Joel Saget Source: AFP

Policeman Ahmed Merabet, a 42-year-old Muslim man has been named as one of the officers killed.

Graphic video shows the officer being killed point-blank on the sidewalk by the terrorists after begging for his life.

What is Charlie Hebdo?

The satirical newspaper gained notoriety in February 2006 when it reprinted cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed that had originally appeared in Danish daily Jyllands-Posten, causing fury across the Muslim world.

Its offices were firebombed in November 2011 when it published a cartoon of Mohammed and under the title Charia Hebdo. No one was injured in that attack.

Previous attack ... this picture shows the offices of French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo when it was firebombed in 2011. Picture: Getty Images Source: Getty Images

Despite being taken to court under anti-racism laws, the weekly continued to publish controversial cartoons of the Muslim prophet. In September 2012 Charlie Hebdo published cartoons of a naked Mohammed as violent protests were taking place in several countries over a low-budget film, titled Innocence of Muslims, which was made in the United States and insulted the prophet.

French schools, consulates and cultural centres in 20 Muslim countries were briefly closed along with embassies for fear of retaliatory attacks at the time.

Before his death in Wednesday's shooting, editor Stephane Charbonnier received death threats and lived under police protection.

Charlie Hebdo's front page on the day of the shooting

The French newspaper has long been the subject of threats and attacks in its 50-year history, particularly for poking fun at the Muslim Prophet Mohammed.

The cover of Wednesday's paper — the day of the shooting — featured a caricature of Michel Houellebecq, a novelist whose sixth novel, Submission, predicts a future France run by Muslims, in which women no longer wear Western clothes and polygamy is accepted.

On the cover, Mr Houellebecq is depicted as a wizard and smoking a cigarette, saying: "In 2022, I will do Ramadan."

The last tweet on Charlie Hebdo's Twitter profile page @Charlie_Hebdo_, sent about an hour before the shootings, included a satirical cartoon of Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. In it he wishes everyone "good health".

It has not been confirmed if Charlie Hebdo's latest cover image or tweet were the cause of the shooting.

Paris raises terror alert

French President Francois Hollande has condemned the attack as an "undoubtedly terrorist act."

Paris has raised its terror alert level to the highest setting following the attack, with Mr Hollande calling an emergency cabinet meeting.

"France is today in shock, in front of a terrorist attack. This newspaper was threatened several rimes in the past and we need to show we are a united country," he said.

French President Francois Hollande (C) arrives at the headquarters of the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo in Paris. Picture: AFP Source: AFP

"We have to be firm, and we have to be stand strong with the international community in the coming days and weeks. We are at a very difficult moment following several terrorist attacks. "We are threatened because we are a country of freedom. We will punish the attackers. We will look for the people responsible."

The French interior minister, Bernard Cazeneuve, said prosecutors have been asked to take all precautions to protect publications, cultural institutions and public places.

He said that all measures were being taken "to neutralise these three criminals who have committed this barbaric act."

Thousands rally in Paris for victims

Thousands of people joined rallies in Paris and other French cities on Wednesday evening to pay tribute to the victims of the massacre.

At least 10,000 people gathered in the eastern city of Lyon and another 5000 in Paris not far from the site of the attack that killed 12 people, according to police.

Crowds chanted "liberate d'expression" and held up pens, as a black armband was placed on Lady Liberty at Place de la Republique.

Peaceful rally ... thousands gather in front of the prefecture in Lille, northern France. Picture: AFP/ Denis Charlet Source: AFP

People holds placards reading 'I am Charlie' in a gathering in Toulouse. Picture: AFP/Eric Cabanis Source: AFP

A woman demonstrates in Toulouse for press freedom. Picture: AFP/Eric Cabanis Source: AFP

Liberty ... a black armband was placed on Lady Liberty at Place de la Republique as demonstrators for peace wave the French flag. Picture: AFP/Dominique Faget Source: AFP

World leaders respond

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott condemned Thursday the "barbaric act" in Paris

"Australia stands with the people and the government of France at this difficult time," Abbott said in a statement.

"The thoughts of all Australians are with the families of those who have lost their lives in this barbaric act. Freedom of expression is the cornerstone of a free society,"

World leaders have condemned Wednesday's shooting, calling it an attack on press freedom and barbaric.

British Prime Minister David Cameron said the murders were "sickening".

"We stand with the French people in the fight against terror and defending the freedom of the press."

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said the killings were a "barbaric attack on freedom of speech".

"My thoughts are with the victims, their families and their colleagues," he said.

The White House said it condemns the Paris attack in "strongest possible terms."

"Everybody here at the White House are with the families of those who were killed or injured in this attack," White House spokesman Josh Earnest said, speaking on MSNBC.

"Senior officials at the White House have been in close touch with their counterparts in France this morning."

He said the US was willing to help the French with an investigation.

German chancellor Angela Merkel said the shooting was "also an attack on press and free speech", while Russian president Vladimir Putin said he "resolutely condemns terrorism."

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi condemned the deadly attack highlighted the need to close ranks against militants.

"This terrorist attack (is) condemned by Iraq, which has suffered greatly at the hands of terrorist groups," Abadi said in a statement. "This confirms that terrorism threatens all the countries of the world, and not Iraq alone."

Queen Elizabeth also sent a message to Mr Hollande.

"Prince Philip and I send our sincere condolences to the families of those who have been killed and to those who have been injured in the attack in Paris this morning," she said. "We send our thoughts and prayers to all those who have been affected."

Pope Francis strongly condemned the "horrible attack" against a French satirical weekly Wednesday that left 12 people dead, his spokesman said.

"The Holy Father expresses the strongest condemnation for the horrible attack that plunged the city of Paris into mourning," Federico Lombardi said in a statement.

UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon said the attack was a "direct assault on democracy, media and freedom of expression."

President Obama comments from the Oval Office on the attack at Paris satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. Photo: AP

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