Twelve people were killed and four left critically wounded today when armed gunmen carried out a ‘massacre’ at the
offices of a notoriously anti-Islamic satirical magazine in Paris.
According to Daily Mail, two masked men brandishing Kalashnikovs and rocket launchers burst into the Charlie Hebdo headquarters, opening fire on staff.
By midday, there were reports of up to 12 people dead and 10 wounded, four critically, including journalists, administrative staff, and police officers who attended the scene.
Pierre de Cossette, a broadcast journalist with Europe1 News, said: ‘Several men in black cagoules were heard to shout “the Prophet has been avenged”.’
Officers were involved in a gunfight with the men, who escaped in a hijacked car and sped away from the 15th arrondissement office, towards east Paris.
As well as the AK47 assault rifles, there were also reports of a rocket-propelled grenade being used.
When shots rang out, it is thought that three policemen on bicycles were the first to respond.