Thread: TERRORIST ATTACK 12 killed at magazine; gunmen on the loose CNN

Youngest Suspect in Charlie Hebdo Attack Turns Himself In

By ABC NEWS Good Morning America

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Twelve people have died and three others were critically injured as gunmen opened fire at the office of a Paris-based satirical magazine Wednesday, police said, an attack that France's president called a "terrorist operation."

The shooting at the office of Charlie Hebdo was a "cowardly attack," said President Hollande, speaking at the shooting scene. The magazine had been targeted in the past over its content, often aimed at religious groups.

"This is a terrorist operation against an office that has been threatened several times, which is why it was protected," he said.

The turmoil punctured an otherwise normal afternoon, the gunshots audible from nearby buildings, sending bystanders cowering. The masked gunmen were later seen fleeing the scene and hijacked a car.

They have not been caught and a search is underway for the shooters.

The tragedy marks France's deadliest terror attack in decades. France raised its alert to the highest level, and reinforced security at houses of worship, stores, media offices and transportation.

The magazine's office was firebombed in 2011 and its website was hacked after its cover featured the prophet Muhammad. Nearly a year later, the publication again published crude Muhammad caricatures, drawing denunciations from around the Muslim world.

The cover of this week’s issue of the magazine focuses on a new book by Michel Houellebecq, “Submission,” which depicts France led by an Islamic party that bans women from the workplace.

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper expressed sadness following the shooting.

"I'm horrified by the barbaric attacks in France," he wrote on Twitter.

https://gma.yahoo.com/12-dead-terror...opstories.html

Charlie Hebdo attack: What we know and don't know

By Dana Ford and Jethro Mullen, CNN
Updated 10:49 AM ET, Thu January 8, 2015



French police hunt for terror attack suspects 03:35

(CNN)A huge manhunt continued Thursday forsuspects in the deadly attack on the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.

Twelve people were killed in the shooting in Paris, which has prompted widespread shock and condemnation.

Investigators are trying to piece together what happened and officials are sharing some of the information with reporters.

Here's a summary of what we know and don't know at this point:

THE ATTACK
What we know: About 11:30 a.m. (5:30 a.m. ET), a car pulled up outside the Charlie Hebdo office in Paris' 11th district. Two people got out. They were dressed in black, carried what appeared to be automatic weapons and had their faces covered.

The gunmen asked maintenance men where the magazine office was located and opened fire, killing one of the workers.

They made their way to the magazine's office on the second floor and headed to the newsroom, opening fire again, killing 10 people this time. The staff of the magazine, which publishes weekly on Wednesdays, was in a lunchtime editorial meeting when the gunmen burst into the office. Hebdo's editor and a police officer who was in charge of protecting him were among those killed.

The gunmen then left the building and drove off with a third suspect, encountering and exchanging fire with police three times.

A second police officer was shot and killed in the final exchange.

A video from the attack shows two gunmen leaving their vehicle, with one approaching a man who appears to be an officer, lying on the ground and possibly wounded, and opening fire.

The suspects later carjacked another vehicle to continue their getaway.

What we don't know: Investigators are in the early stages of understanding exactly what happened inside the offices of Charlie Hebdo. The gunmen asked for specific people by name before killing them, according to a doctor who helped wounded patients and spoke with survivors of the attack.



Paris attack's tragic timeline 02:31
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Dr. Gerald Kierzek said the gunmen divided the men from the women before opening fire. The shooting was not a random spray of bullets, he said, but more of a precision execution.

The attack appeared highly organized, down to a detailed getaway plan. It's not yet clear if the gunmen had help.

"Several detentions" took place overnight in connection with the shootings, French Prime Minister Manuel Valls said Thursday, without specifying exactly how many.

Any possible links between the people detained and the main suspects, who are still at large, weren't disclosed.

THE SUSPECTS
What we know: Authorities have released the names and photographs of two brothers they say they are looking for: Cherif Kouachi and Said Kouachi.

Prime Minister Valls said Thursday that the suspects were "known to the security services."

Cherif Kouachi, 32, was convicted in 2008 of being part of a jihadist recruitment ring in Paris that sent fighters to the war in Iraq.

Less is publicly known about Said Kouachi, 34. But CNN affiliate BFMTV reported that his ID was discovered during the investigation into the attack, helping police single out the suspects.



Report: Suspect in Paris attack turns himself in01:35
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A third suspect has turned himself in to police, a source close to the case told the news agency Agence France-Presse. Hamyd Mourad, 18, surrendered to police late Wednesday after seeing his name mentioned on social media, the source told AFP.

Some experts warned that how well the gunmen in the attack wielded their weapons, hid their identities and apparently planned their escape showed a marked difference form other "lone wolf" attacks.

Writing for CNN, retired Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling, former commander of U.S. Army Europe, wrote that the gunmen appeared well-trained.

The used cover and moved quickly -- suggesting a "single-mindedness of mission" -- and seemed to be good marksmen, he wrote.

Opinion: What videos reveal about Paris killers
What we don't know: Authorities identified the two men they're hunting, but they've so far been unable to apprehend them.

"They are still free, they are heavily armed, so we can be afraid of further violence," Valls said in a radio interview Thursday.

It's also unclear what role, if any, Mourad might have had in the attack. Reports in French media and on social platforms suggested he was at school in northeastern France at the time of the attack.

THE VICTIMS
What we know: At least 12 people were killed in the attack, including police officers and some of the most revered and controversial cartoonists in France.



EXPAND GALLERY

Charlie Hebdo editor Stephane "Charb" Charbonnier was among the dead.

At least seven other journalists were killed, including well-known cartoonists Georges Wolinski, who worked under the pen name Wolinski, Jean "Cabu" Cabut, Bernard "Tignous" Verlhac and Philippe Honore, known as Honore.

Also killed was journalist, economist and Charlie Hebdo shareholder Bernard Maris, BFMTV reported.

A maintenance man and two police officers also died, according to authorities.



Remembering the Paris attack victims 01:20
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The two police officers killed were identified as Ahmed Merabet and Franck Brinsolaro.

Eleven people were wounded in the attack, including four in serious condition.

What we don't know: Some of the victims' identities have not been released yet, including that of the maintenance man.

Over time, the stories of these lives cut tragically short by terrorism are likely to emerge.

THE MOTIVE
What we know: During the attack, the gunmen said, "Allahu akbar" -- which translates to "God is great" -- and that they were avenging the Prophet Mohammed, Molins, the prosecutor, told reporters.



French magazine known for outrageous satire02:34
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Charlie Hebdo has a controversial history of depicting Mohammed, often in an unfavorable light, which has angered many Muslims around the world.

Earlier cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammed spurred protests and the burning of the magazine's office three years ago.

Its last tweet before Wednesday's attack featured a cartoon of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi offering festive greetings with the words, "And, above all, health!"

Why Islam forbids images of Mohammed

What we don't know: It's unclear at this point whether the suspects had ties to any international terrorist group. No one has claimed responsibility.

The FBI and U.S. intelligence agencies are mapping the suspects' relationships for clues, including digital records. They are running the suspects' names through databases and looking for connections with ISIS and al Qaeda.

Investigators are also trying to establish whether this was a one-off attack or part of a coordinated strategy.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/01/07/europe...ary/index.html

Hostages Taken at Paris Kosher Supermarket

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France 24 Twitter

BY: Reuters
January 9, 2015 8:19 am

PARIS (Reuters) – Several people were taken hostage at a kosher supermarket in eastern Paris on Friday after a shootout involving a man armed with two guns, a police source said.
There were unconfirmed local media reports that the man was the same as the one suspected of killing a policewoman in a southern suburb of Paris on Thursday.
A police source had told Reuters earlier he was a member of the same jihadist group as the two suspects in Wednesday’s attack at weekly newspaper Charlie Hebdo.
The exact number of hostages was unclear. Local media spoke of at least five. The police source said the man was equipped with automatic weapons.
Police immediately cordoned off the area and a helicopter was flying overhead. Local media said Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve was rushing to the scene.
(Reporting by Gerard Bon and Emmanuel Jarry; Editing by Mark John and James Regan)
http://freebeacon.com/national-secur...r-supermarket/

the French don't have to bother with a trial. JMO

French Police Storm Two Hostage Sites, Killing Charlie Hebdo Suspects

By DAN BILEFSKY and MAÏA de la BAUME
JAN. 9, 2015




An assault group stormed the building northeast of Paris where the suspects in Wednesday's shooting attack were holding a hostage. CreditYoan Valat/European Pressphoto Agency





PARIS — French police on Friday killed the two brothers suspected of murdering 12 people at a Paris newspaper on Wednesday and freed his hostage unharmed, the authorities said. The police launched a simultaneous raid on a kosher supermarket in Paris where an alleged associate of the brothers was holding an unnamed number of hostages. At least some of hostages escaped unharmed, according to the police.

Shortly after 5 p.m., explosions and gunfire were heard at a printing plant outside of Paris where the two brothers were holding a single hostage.

Moments later, gunfire erupted at a kosher supermarket on the eastern end of Paris where an alleged associate of the brothers was holding an unknown number of hostages. One woman was seen running from the market as heavily-armed police officers moved in, according to The A.P.

The French newspaper Le Monde reported that the supermarket hostage-taker had also been killed.

The gunman in the supermarket had threatened to kill his hostages if the brothers, holding their hostage at a printing plant near Dammartin-en-Goële, outside of Paris, were attacked.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/10/wo...-shooting.html

Latest updates at 12:05 p.m. ET

GROCERY STORE HOSTAGE SITUATION

• Some police were injured in the operation at the eastern Paris kosher grocery store, police union spokesman Pascal Disand said. At least 10 hostages escaped, and the hostage-taker -- Amedy Coulibaly, 32, one of two people wanted in Thursday's deadly shooting of a policewoman south of Paris -- was killed, Disand said.
• The hostages being held at the market near Porte de Vincennes are alive, and "the terrorist is dead," tweeted Gerard Araud, the French ambassador to the United States.
• Police at the scene of the grocery store siege shouted "get down!" and "we've got him," video from CNN affiliate BFMTV show.
• Police could be seen leaving the eastern Paris grocery store, where hostages were being held, with people late Friday afternoon.
• Large explosions could be heart around 5:10 p.m. (11:10 a.m ET) Friday near the store.
• The hostage-taker there demanded freedom for the Kouachi brothers -- the suspects in the massacre at the offices of Charlie Hebdo -- witnesses said, according to Pascal Disand of the Alliance Police Union.


• Dozens of schools were placed under lockdown because of the hostage situation in eastern Paris, police said.


The grocery store hostage situation was near Porte de Vincennes.

• Authorities haven't said how many are being held, or if anyone has been killed.
• Police anti-terror units raced to the scene of the hostage situation early Friday afternoon, while ambulances blared as they moved away from it. Roads around the area have been blocked off.

STANDOFF IN DAMMARTIN-EN-GOELE
• The male hostage who was being held by the Kouachi brothers inside a printing business in Dammartin-en-Goele is safe, Othis Mayor Bernard Corneille said.
• The brothers were killed in an operation by security forces, Corneille said. French media also reported their deaths, citing police sources.
• Four helicopters, including a medical helicopter, landed at a site near where the operation took place.
• Men were on the roof of the building where the Kouachi brothers -- the suspects in the massacre at the offices of Charlie Hebdo -- are believed to be, images from CNN affiliate BFMTV showed. Smoke could be seen rising from the building.
• A helicopter landed next to the building.
• Shots were heard shortly before 5 p.m. around the industrial area where the brothers were thought to be surrounded by law enforcement. At least large explosions were also heard.



• Yves Albarello, who is in France's parliament, said on French channel iTele that the two suspects told police by phone that they wanted to die as martyrs.
• A salesman, who identified himself only as Didier, told France Info radio that he shook one of the gunman's hands around 8:30 a.m. Friday as they arrived at a Dammartin-en-Goele printing business -- the same place where the Kouachi brothers are thought to be. Didier told the public radio station that he first thought the man, who was dressed in black and heavily armed, was a police officer.
As he left, the armed man said, "Go, we don't kill civilians." Didier said, "It wasn't normal. I did not know what was going on."
• Dammartin-en-Goele residents were told to stay inside, and schools were put on lockdown, the mayor's media office told CNN on Friday. Shops in the town have been told to close.

OTHER DEVELOPMENTS
• Said Kouachi, one of the two brothers suspected of killing 12 people in and around the provocative satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in Paris, spent several months in Yemen in 2011, receiving weapons training and working with al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, which is based there, U.S. officials said Friday.
• French President Francois Hollande held a crisis meeting Friday afternoon with senior Cabinet members at the Elysee Palace in Paris. Those in attendance included Prime Minister Manuel Valls, Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve and Justice Minister Christiane Taubira, according to the French presidency.
• These aren't the only incidents occupying French authorities. So, too, is the fatal shooting of the policewoman Thursday in Montrouge, a southern suburb of Paris. On Friday, French police released photos of a man and a woman -- Coulibaly and Hayat Boumeddiene, 26 -- who they believe carried out this attack and are believed to be armed and dangerous.
Father: 'It's like a war'
Henri Dunant elementary school should be a place to learn, to play, to be a kid.
Not to hide in fear of killers on the loose. But that's what students did for hours Friday, there and at many other schools around Dammartin-en-Goele.
By late Friday afternoon, some of them were finally allowed to leave, though they weren't alone. Police officers accompanied the children -- holding their hands as they guided and, in some cases, lifted them onto an awaiting bus that would take them to safety.
The Interior Ministry reported the schoolchildren were being evacuated to sports facilities in nearby Mitry-Mory.
One father, who lives across the street from a school and asked to be identified only as Teddy, described the situation as "very worrying."
"It's like a war," he said. "I don't know how I will explain this to my 5-year-old son."

Previous sightings?
Two days ago, it was all about Charlie Hebdo, the magazine whose offices came under ruthless attack, with staff members called out and summarily executed.

Said Kouachi, left, and Cherif Kouachi are suspects in the Paris attack.

Now, it's about Cherif Kouachi, 32, and Said Kouachi, 34, the brothers allegedly behind that horrific violence, who set off a massive manhunt after they got away.
Authorities followed a lead Thursday morning from a gas station attendant near Villers-Cotterets, about 40 kilometers (25 miles) from Dammartin-en-Goele, whom the Kouachis reportedly threatened as they stole food and gas. Police think the brothers may have later fled on foot into nearby woodlands.
Northern France's Picardy region is the focal point of the manhunt, with Prime Minister Valls putting it on the same, highest-possible alert level as has been in place since Wednesday in and around Paris.
And police spying down with night vision optics from helicopters say they think they caught a glimpse of them Thursday near Crepy-en-Valois, France -- not far from the reported robbery.
That town and the gas station border on a patch of woods, and on another side of the forest, 30 to 40 police vehicles swarmed out from the town of Longpont.
Squads of officers armed with rifles -- some in helmets and with shields -- canvassed fields and forest.
They didn't find the Kouachi brothers there. Instead, somehow, they're believed to have moved to Dammartin-en-Goele.

Who are the suspects?
Other places, other troubles
More than 80,000 officers deployed across France to try to intercept the brothers and anyone else -- like those behind the Montrouge shooting, which authorities ruled a terror attack -- intent on inflicting harm.
"France is living through a trial, when we see the worst massacre of this kind in the last 50 years," President Francois Hollande said Friday. "It shows when a newspaper is attacked that it's because it's the expression of liberty itself."


Paris attack's tragic timeline 02:31
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As they stand guard against more bloodshed, authorities are working to piece together what's happened already and the backgrounds of those responsible.

Police have detained at least nine people in connection with the Charlie Hebdo investigation, in addition to searching residences in a few towns.

They're also trying to learn more about the brothers they believe carried out the horrific attack.

His older brother, Said, the elder of the Kouachi brothers, has been to Yemen, a French official said. There, he had weapons training with al Qaeda, a U.S. official with access to French intelligence said.

Cherif Kouachi was sentenced to three years in prison for being part of a jihadist recruitment ring in Paris that sent fighters to join the conflict in Iraq.

An ISIS radio broadcast Thursday praised the attackers, calling them "brave jihadists." But the broadcast did not say whether the two had any connection to the militant group.
Satirical magazine is no stranger to controversy
Bloodshed, satire, values


Map: Charlie Hebdo HQ, Paris

Charlie Hebdo's staff is as defiant as it was after its former offices were fire-bombed in 2011, the day it was to publish an issue poking fun at Islamic law.

Back then, editor and cartoonist Stephane Charbonnier, "Charb" for short, said it would not slow them down one bit. The magazine continued lampooning world religions, politics and society in its hallmark profane -- at times vulgar -- style.

Cartoonists took a profane aim at the world
Some have found their drawings offensive, but they are not uncommon for European comic satire aimed at an adult audience.

Since the attack, Charb was guarded day and night, a journalist who knew him told CNN. Yemen's al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula placed him on a list of assassination targets.


Slain editor: Without freedom of speech we are dead 02:08
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He was among those killed Wednesday, along with four other well-known cartoonists known by the pen names Cabu, Wolinski, Honore and Tignous.

Patrick Pelloux, a columnist for the magazine and also a trained paramedic, rushed to the offices when he heard about the shooting.

"I don't know if I'm afraid anymore, because I've seen fear. I was scared for my friends, and they are dead," he told CNN's Anderson Cooper. "I know that they didn't want us to be quiet. They wanted us to continue to fight for these values, cultural pluralism, democracy and secularism, the respect of others. They would be assassinated twice, if we remained silent."
http://www.cnn.com/2015/01/09/europe...ing/index.html

The Associated Press reports that a member of Al Qaeda's branch in Yemen says the group directed Wednesday's massacre in Paris.

VIDEO @ http://www.foxnews.com/world/2015/01/09/paris-terror-attack-suspects-reportedly-steal-car-take-hostage-in-northeast/

http://www.alipac.us/f19/french-lead...ttacks-316720/

Prosecutor: Paris grocery gunman linked to 3rd shooting

Posted: Sunday, January 11, 2015 7:55 am | Updated: 9:23 am, Sun Jan 11, 2015.
Associated Press |

PARIS- The shooting of a jogger in a Paris suburb on the same day as the Charlie Hebdo massacre has been linked to the gunman who killed a policewoman and four hostages at a kosher grocery, a prosecutor said Sunday.

In a brief statement, the prosecutor said ballistics tests on shell cases from the shooting Wednesday in Fontenay aux Roses linked them to the automatic weapon at the kosher store stormed two days later. The prosecutor said the jogger was seriously wounded.

Amedy Coulibaly was killed when police stormed the market. That raid took place just minutes after security forces killed the brothers who carried out the massacre at Charlie Hebdo, a satirical newspaper that lampooned Islam and other religions.
Earlier Sunday, video of emerged of Coulibaly where he pledges allegiance to the Islamic State group and defends the attacks on the satirical newspaper and the Jewish store. Al-Qaida's branch in Yemen has previously said it directed the brothers' attack on the newspaper to avenge the honor of the Prophet Muhammad.

In the video, apparently filmed over several days, Coulibaly can be seen with a gun, exercising and giving speeches in fluent French and broken Arabic in front of an Islamic State emblem. He defends the attacks carried out on the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo, police and the Jewish store.

"What we are doing is completely legitimate, given what they are doing," Coulibaly tells the camera. "You cannot attack and not expect retribution so you are playing the victim as if you don't understand what's happening."

The SITE Intelligence Group said it had verified the video, and a former drug dealing associate of Coulibaly's confirmed to The Associated Press the man in the video was indeed the slain hostage-taker. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he did not want to attract police attention.

Coulibaly shot a policewoman to death on the outskirts of Paris the day after the Charlie Hebdo massacre, while the brothers who carried it out were on the run. On Friday, with the brothers cornered inside a printing house near Charles de Gaulle airport, he took over the kosher grocery, demanding freedom for the two.

After speaking in French in the video, Coulibaly continues in broken Arabic, stumbling over words he can't pronounce that he seems to be reading from a paper. He mangles grammar as he gives his allegiance to the head of the Islamic State. He repeats a pact that other loyalists have used to pledge their fealty to the militant group and then calls for others to carry out similar attacks.

The video appears to have been filmed over several days. Coulibaly is wearing different clothing in different shots. Someone added text afterward detailing the bloody outcome. At one point, he says Charlie Hebdo will be attacked "tomorrow" and that he and the brothers - longtime acquaintances, according to judicial documents obtained by The Associated Press - were coordinating.

All three men were killed in nearly simultaneous raids by security forces.

Five people detained in connection with the three days of bloodshed in France were released from custody, the Paris prosecutor's spokeswoman said earlier Sunday. Family members of the attackers have been given preliminary charges, but prosecutor's spokeswoman Agnes Thibault-Lecuivre said no one remained in detention Sunday over the attacks that left 17 people dead.

Coulibaly's widow, who has been named as an accomplice, is believed to have traveled to a Turkish city near the Syrian border and then all traces of her were lost, according to a Turkish intelligence official, who was not authorized to speak on the record.

Brothers Said and Cherif Kouachi methodically massacred 12 people at the Charlie Hebdo offices, led police on a chase for two days and were then cornered Friday at a printing house near Charles de Gaulle Airport. Separately, Coulibaly shot a policewoman to death and attacked the Paris kosher market, threatening more violence unless police let the Kouachis go. Four hostages died.

In Germany, arsonists early Sunday attacked a newspaper that republished Charlie Hebdo's cartoons. Two men were detained. No one was hurt in the fire, but the newspaper Hamburger Morgenpost said several files in its archives were destroyed.

http://www.fayobserver.com/news/nati...8276636af.html
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Paris attack: Teenager wrongly labelled Charlie Hebdo shooting suspect was in school at the time

• Jan 11, 2015 15:40
• By David Collins

Mourad Hamyd, 18, who describes himself as a "normal teenager", fears the wrongful accusation could haunt him for years to come


Wrongly accused: Mourad was known as the "third suspect"A teenager who became known as the “third suspect” in the Charlie Hebdo massacre has spoken out for the first time.

Mourad Hamyd was released after police realised he was at school at the time of the shooting.

Describing himself as a normal 18-year-old who lives with his parents Mourad said “horrible and false things” had been said about him.

On the day the world was gripped by the shooting of 12 people at the offices of a famous French magazine, he became known as the third gunman, possibly the getaway driver.

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But classmates took to Twitter to defend him, with one writing about him having sat next to her in philosophy class at the time of the killings.

He was released without charge on Friday evening after 50 hours in custody.

Mourad, who is the brother-in-law of one of the Kouachi brothers, said: “I was stunned, completely overwhelmed by the events but the police officers were very correct with me.”

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“I’m in shock, people said horrible and false things about me on social media even though I am a normal student who lives quietly with his parents

“The attack was horrific and my thoughts are with the victims.”
After a massive manhunt, the Kouachi brothers were killed in a dramatic police standoff on Friday.

It remains unclear how Mourad who until this week was completely unknown to the police, became linked to the magazine attack.

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But as he reflected on his name appearing in news reports and online posts across the world, he said he feared the wrongful accusation would haunt him for years to come.

He said: “I only hope this won’t taint my future.

“I have nothing to do with this whole thing, Cherif is just my brother-in-law with whom we have a fairly distant relationship.”

He told how Cherif lived in the Paris region and rarely visited his northern home town.

Mourad’s sister, who is married to Cherif, was taken into custody on Wednesday and freed on Saturday.

Another relative said: “I am sure she is also innocent.”

As France prepared for a huge march in Paris in honour of the victims on Sunday, Hamyd’s family said they would attend a rally in their town of Charleville-Mezieres to pay their own tribute.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/paris-attack-teenager-wrongly-labelled-4959525