Manhunt for two brothers continues
Travel to Yemen ‘to train with al-Qaeda’, Reuters reports
Authorities converge on area northeast of Paris
Read the latest blog summary
10.51pm GMT
Police have given no new information on their operation around Longpont, according to Le Monde. AFP quotes a police source as saying “the search will continue tonight with the help of five helicopters” in the region.
10.41pm GMT
The Yemen branch of al-Qaeda, al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula(AQAP), has some track record of attempting terrorist attacks in the West, including the December 2009 “underwear bomber” plot and the October 2010 cargo planes bomb plot, with explosives packed in toner cartridges.
The leader of AQAP, Nasir al-Wuhayshi, is al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri’s second-in-command.
10.28pm GMT
French Justice Minister Christiane Taubira has told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour that one of the Kouachi brothers traveled to Yemen in 2005, but Taubira would not say which brother, CNN reports.
Meanwhile Reuters, citing unnamed US and European sources, reports that Saïd Kouachi, the older brother, visited Yemen in 2011 to train with al Qaeda-affiliated militants:
The sources said Said Kouachi, 34, was in Yemen for a number of months training with Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), one of the group’s most active affiliates.
A Yemeni official familiar with the matter said the Yemen government was aware of the possibility of a connection between Said Kouachi and AQAP, and was looking into such possible links.
10.23pm GMT
The culture ministry announces three nights of homage to the Charlie Hebdo victims at the François Miterrand national library:
3 nuits d'hommage aux victimes de #CharlieHebdo à la #BnF François Mitterrand @ActuBnF #NousSommesCharlie pic.twitter.com/4Oz6gk4wXE
10.11pm GMT
Multiple US media outlets are citing unnamed US officials who say that the Charlie Hebdo suspects, Chérif and Saïd Kouachi, had been on a US no-fly list for years and were listed in a database of terrorism suspects known as TIDE. CNN, ABC News and Yahoo News are carrying the reports.
9.54pm GMT
AFP publishes an infographic of the deadliest terror attacks in France in the last 40 years:
Les attentats les plus meurtriers en France pic.twitter.com/cfI9rFgDKi #AFP
9.48pm GMT
The Guardian’s Raya Jalabi (@rayajalabi) looks at a Le Monde report delving into the background of the Kouachi brothers. The report focuses predominantly on Cherif Kouachi, Raya writes, and draws upon previous records and reports relating to a 2008 stint in prison (see previous). Some salient points:
Cherif, the younger of the two brothers, was convicted in 2008 to three years in prison relating to his involvement in the establishment of a network to send would-be jihadis to Iraq between 2004-2006.
His involvement with the so-called Buttes-Chaumont cell of the 19th arrondissement started after he began frequenting the Adda’wa mosque in Stalingrad, Paris in 2003. Testifying at a 2008 trial, Kouachi himself described a youth peppered with petty crime including theft and drugs, but said he became interested in waging ‘jihad’ after meeting the leader of the cell at the mosque.
9.33pm GMT
Here are pictures of vigils today in Amsterdam...
9.12pm GMT
The publisher of Michel Houellebecq’s new novel, which envisions an Islamist government in France, has announced that the author is “suspending promotion” of the novel, AFP reports. The author was said to be “profoundly affected by the death of his friend Bernard Maris,” the economist and Charlie Hebdo writer.
DERNIÈRE MINUTE - Michel #Houellebecq suspend la promotion de #Soumission http://t.co/tfG5mZYDui #CharlieHebdo pic.twitter.com/GRl3bjpHBT
9.10pm GMT
The Paris mayor and other officials gather at the Place de la République for a second night of vigils and rallies.
Avec @BertrandDelanoe et les élus de @Paris place de la République ce soir. #JeSuisCharlie pic.twitter.com/423wwMXdc5
9.06pm GMT
The Guardian media group has pledged £100,000 to sustain Charlie Hebdo, editor Alan Rusbridger has announced at the “We are Charlie” event.
Separately, €250,000 (£195,000) had been earmarked to support Charlie Hebdo by the Digital Press Fund, paid for by Google.
8.48pm GMT
As our live blog coverage continues, here’s a summary of where things stand, about 34 hours after the attack on the Charlie Hebdo offices in Paris that killed 12, including eight journalists, a maintenance worker, a visitor to the building and two policemen.
8.16pm GMT
Video: Police search for Paris attack suspects as security in the capital is increased
Here’s video using footage from earlier today of police searching the northeastern French town of Longpont, and of the enhanced police presence in Paris:
8.12pm GMT
Mourners in France fear a political backlash to the Charlie Hebdo attacks, writes Angelique Chrisafis in the Guardian:
As the grim tolling of the bells of Notre Dame cathedral ended the minute’s silence on a tense day of national mourning, Sabrina Deliry, a 34-year-old Parisian bank worker, stood among hundreds gathered in the rain to defend “freedom”.
Having taken the day off work to join the crowd, many silently weeping and holding newspapers, pens or bunches of flowers, she felt numb and afraid. [...]
“I’m afraid there will be a real sense of: ‘If you love France, stay; if you don’t love France, then go home,’” she said. “This is a country with already so much to worry about in terms of economic difficulty and a society on edge. I don’t want politicians to capitalise on this. I will feel very let down if the Front National cash in on it.”
8.05pm GMT
Four leading French imams and the Vatican issued a joint declaration Thursday denouncing the Charlie Hebdo attack and warning that the world is a dangerous place without freedom of expression, but urged the media to be respectful of religions, the Associated Press reports:
The Vatican’s office for interreligious dialogue said the four Muslim spiritual leaders, who were visiting the Vatican this week, joined Pope Francis in condemning the attack and urging all believers to show friendship and solidarity to the victims.
#PrayersForParis
The declaration, issued in French, stressed that dialogue among faiths was the only way to eliminate prejudice.
“In these circumstances, we should recall that the world is in danger without freedom of expression,” it said. But it added: “Considering the impact of the media, the (signatories) invite media leaders to provide information that respects religions, their followers and their practices, thus promoting a culture of encounter.”
7.59pm GMT
The Guardian is hosting an evening of discussion and debate, “We are Charlie,” in support of our murdered French colleagues. The event is to begin momentarily.
7.54pm GMT
The Charlie Hebdo suspects were “without a doubt followed” by police at some time before the attack, interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve has said, but police apparently gleaned no indication that an attack was imminetn, Le Figaro reports.
7.52pm GMT
A vehicle has exploded south of Paris, in Villejuif, and authorities are on the scene, Le Monde reports. None were wounded, according to the paper.
Update: Le Monde reports the car had not recently been moved and there’s no indication of a nexus with the Charlie Hebdo attack.
Explosion d'un véhicule à Villejuif @lemondefr @LEXPRESS @LeParisien_75 pic.twitter.com/q6dhDl4V4L
7.48pm GMT
French culture minister Fleur Pellerin has called for the release about 1m euros to assure the continuity of Charlie Hebdo, Le Monde reports.
Earlier Thursday, Libération reported that Charlie Hebdo would use its offices to produce its next issues. Le Monde and other media outlets held a meeting Thursday and agreed to make a major call for donations, on all participating media outlets including papers, television and radio, Friday morning.
7.40pm GMT
7.17pm GMT
The lights of the Eiffel Tower are dimmed in tribute to the Charlie Hebdo victims.
Eiffel Tower lights turned off in memory of the #CharlieHebdo victims pic.twitter.com/opRW7OYAfh
7.04pm GMT
AFP has produced a graphic of earlier attacks against the press in the Paris area:
[INFOGRAPHIE] Précédentes attaques contre la presse #AFP pic.twitter.com/5ydU9ajIGq
7.01pm GMT
The Guardian’s Kim Willsher is in the Longpont area, where major police activity has been reported. But it’s grown quiet where Kim is:
#CharlieHebdo. There were three military Puma helicopters overhead here earlier searching for gunmen at Longpont. Now only stars. V. Cold
#CharlieHebdo on edge of a forest in the middle of nowhere as elite French police search for gunmen. pic.twitter.com/mgBNuZBJXa
7.00pm GMT
Interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve is quoted in Le Monde as saying there’s no link “at this stage” between the attack in Montrouge in southern Paris this morning, in which a policewoman and a street cleaner were shot and two have been detained, and the Charlie Hebdo attack.
6.58pm GMT
Laurent Léger, a journalist who was at the Charlie Hebdo editorial meeting that was attacked but who survived, gave an interview on France Info quoted by Le Monde:
“It was unreal, incomprehensible, in the middle of Paris, at a comic magazine. I saw a masked man, a lot of blood, and half of the staff on the ground...I saw the horror... It was barbarism.”
6.51pm GMT
There is continued police activity near Longpont (map), in a forested area of the Aisne region northeast of Paris.
“Dozens of police cars have converged near Longpont,” Le Monde reports, citing a reporter at the scene.
6.43pm GMT
US attorney general Eric Holder will travel to Paris on Sunday to meet with French officials, according to the justice department.
#BREAKING US attorney general to attend terror talks in Paris on Sunday, a Justice Department official says
6.40pm GMT
The counter-extremism group Quilliam has released a statement calling for a “focus on how communities across Europe can begin to address the issues at the heart of this crisis.”
The group’s recommendations include:
6.23pm GMT
The Foreign Office has urged UK travellers to take extra care while in France. It says on its website:
On 7 January, gunmen attacked the Charlie Hebdo newspaper offices in the east of Paris. Reports indicate 12 people were killed in the attack. On 8 January, a gunman shot and injured individuals in Montrouge, a town to the south west of Paris. You should take extra care at this time and follow the security advice issued by the French authorities.
6.19pm GMT
Farid Darrouf, an imam from the Paillade mosque in the southern city of Montpellier, has said it was a mistake not to invite the Front National to the big political rally in Paris on Sunday, the Guardian’s Mark Tran (@marktran) reports:
Taking part will be the ruling Socialists and the main opposition party, the UMP, led by Nicolas Sarkozy. But the Front National, which received 17.9% of the popular vote in the 2012 presidential election, has not been invited.
“It’s a mistake, we should unite everyone and not judge people by their political colours,” Darrouf said. “Everyone should participate to say no to this barbarism. Division can only feed the fanatics.”
“We are inviting all political forces, republican and democratic... We are not inviting organisations that divide the country, stigmatise our fellow Muslims and play on their their fears.”
6.15pm GMT
Citing the interior minister, France24 reports that the number of people arrested in the current investigation is now nine, up from seven announced earlier Thursday.
#Cazeneuve says nine people have been detained so far as part of the investigation http://t.co/skOPYp5l3K #CharlieHebdo
6.11pm GMT
Gérard Depardieu:
#CharlieHebdo > depuis la Turquie, Gérard #Depardieu est Charlie (via @obenkemoun) pic.twitter.com/dR8fkh17qn
6.03pm GMT
A hashtag slogan has emerged to rival #JeSuisCharlie, the statement of solidarity taken up by mourners, media, embassies, social media users and people around the world after Wednesday’s attack.The Guardian’s Raya Jalabi (@rayajalabi) writes:
I am not Charlie, I am Ahmed the dead cop. Charlie ridiculed my faith and culture and I died defending his right to do so. #JesuisAhmed
Are #JeSuisCharlie and #JeSuisAhmed mutually exclusive?
"I do not agree with what you have to say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it." Voltaire #JeSuisAhmed
#JeSuisAhmed honors French police officer Ahmed Merabat killed in #ParisShooting. Proves being "French" & "Muslim" not mutually exclusive.
5.44pm GMT
The LA Times op-ed page is partially speechless:
A big blank in today's LAT op-ed section: "This is what the world looks like without freedom of expression." pic.twitter.com/K0ey5bd7AV
5.40pm GMT
Marine Le Pen, the leader of the far-right National Front party, told AFP that she condemned her “exclusion” from Sunday’s “republican march” in support of Charlie Hebdo.
Le Pen said that there was “no longer national unity”. She said: “It is very clear. They say that the Front National (FN) are not welcome to a meeting where every other party is invited. There is no longer national unity, it’s disappeared because of their actions.”
5.38pm GMT
AFP is reporting that a second person has been taken into custody in relation to the shooting south of Paris this morning, in Montrouge, in which a female police officer and a street cleaner were shot. AFP reports:
Security forces detained a man soon after the Montrouge shooting but he was not the shooter, police said. They then raided a hotel room nearby but that was unsuccessful.
“We lost track of the alleged attacker in the La Defense area (business district next to Paris),” a police source said. The anti-terrorist section of the Paris prosecutor’s office is now handling the probe into the shooting “in view of the current context” following the Charlie Hebdo killing, and also due to the heavy weaponry carried by the attacker and the “deliberate nature of an act targeting security forces.”
5.28pm GMT
Charlie Hebdo staff have accepted the invitation of the French newspaper Libération to use office space to produce upcoming issues, including one scheduled for publication-- and a million-copy print run -- next week. Libération also welcomed Charlie Hebdo after their offices were attacked in 2011, the Libération web site said.
5.20pm GMT
French police have dispatched a total of 88,150 officers as part of the heightened security posture, with 9,650 in Paris and a further 78,350 throughout the rest of the country, according to the French government.
(h/t @jonathanbucks)
5.14pm GMT
5.07pm GMT
The Syrian government has expressed its condolences to France over the Charlie Hebdo killings in Paris, but also criticised it for encouraging jihadi extremists who are fighting to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad, writes Guardian Middle East editor Ian Black (@ian_black):
An official statement in Damascus on Thursday blamed “short-sighted European policies” for terrorist incidents in Europe and bloodshed in Syria, where more than 200,000 people are now estimated to have been killed since the anti-Assad uprising began in March 2011.
“This terrorist act makes clear without doubt the dangers posed by the spread of the phenomenon of takfiri terrorism, which poses a threat to stability and security across the world,” it said. “Takfiri terrorism” is shorthand for extremist Sunni groups like the Islamic State (Isis) and al-Qaida: it means they are ready to kill non-Muslims or Muslims they see as “apostates.”
4.55pm GMT
The European Commission will submit new counter-terrorism proposals after the Paris attacks, Commission President Jean Claude Juncker has said, according to an AFP report:
I know from experience that one should not react on the moment to such events given the risk of doing either too much or too little,” Juncker told a press conference in the Latvian capital Riga, which has assumed the rotating EU presidency.
Juncker added that the commission, the EU executive arm, “plans to submit new anti-terror proposals in the coming weeks”.
4.53pm GMT
Details about the wounded have been released. According to a Le Monde report:
Four people were seriously injured, have received surgery and remain in hospital.
Seven were hospitalised but suffered minor injuries and have since been discharged.
65 people have shown signs of trauma and are receiving psychiatric treatment.
4.37pm GMT
The Al-Khoei Foundation, a prominent UK-based Shia Muslim organization, said in a statement that it is “shocked and appalled by the terrorist attack” “which is against all principles of faith.” The statement reads in part:
Unfortunately, such horrific acts in the name of religion have become a global phenomenon that is affecting the peace and order of all communities, while innocent victims of these acts, from all faiths and backgrounds, are suffering at the hands of extremists. The use of violence in response to feeling offended is completely unacceptable. The Al-Khoei Foundation strongly believes that interfaith dialogue is the best way to increase understanding and foster tolerance within a framework of free speech and respect.
It is now more important than ever that we come together and increase our efforts to tackle the root cause of this violence that has no religious underpinning and has subverted the name of Islam. ...
4.33pm GMT
Any link between the attackers and al-Qaeda remains unproven and initial French intelligence “suggested that no external link was evident,” writes Nigel Inkster of the International Institute of Strategic Studies:
The perpetrators of the Charlie Hebdo attack are reported as having identified themselves with ‘al-Qaeda in Yemen (sic)’ and gave their motive as avenging the Prophet Mohamed. This connection with al-Qaeda – presumably al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula(AQAP), which has some track record of attempting terrorist attacks in the West and whose leader Nasir al-Wuhayshi is al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri’s second-in-command – however, remains unproven. Moreover, one of the wanted men, Cherif Kouachi, has a track record of jihadist activities which involves sending fighters to al-Qaeda in Iraq, the forerunner of the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS). It remains unclear whether the Charlie Hebdo attack was another lone-wolf operation or whether it was externally panned and directed either by AQAP or ISIS. Initial French intelligence reporting shared with counterpart services suggested that no external link was evident. But the discipline and professionalism shown by the attackers suggests a degree of training not normally associated with lone wolves.
4.01pm GMT
Video: Charlie Hebdo attack suspect Chérif Kouachi in 2004 French TV footage
We’ve edited this footage from the three-minute newscast that appeared earlier in the blog:
3.59pm GMT
There is disagreement in the ruling Socialist party on whether the Front National, led by Marine le Pen, should take part in a rally in Paris on Sunday, the Guardian’s Mark Tran (@marktran) reports:
A spokesman for the Socialists said no one should be excluded, but others including Anne Hidalgo, the mayor of Paris, said the event should be for “republican parties”, implying that the Front National is not part of the French republican tradition. Wallerand de Saint-Just, treasurer for the FN, has tweeted that to exclude his party from Sunday’s rally will be to ignore 30% of the French electorate.
3.57pm GMT
A spokesman for French prime minister, Manuel Valls, is quoted by Le Figaro as saying: “Following this afternoon’s events, the prime minister has chosen to raise the national alert to the highest possible status in Picardie.”
Picardie is the region northeast of Paris where substantial police activity has been playing out today and where mixed reports of a possible sighting of the suspects were floated.
3.45pm GMT
The terror threat level in the UK has not been raised -- but British Transport Police said they have increased armed patrols at London’s St Pancras station to provide reassurance to the public at the Eurostar terminal, the Press Association reports:
A spokesman said: “Since 2012, we have deployed armed officers within London.
“The safety of rail passengers and staff is of paramount importance to us, and we want to provide a reassuring, visible armed presence to deter terrorism on the rail network.
3.06pm GMT
A senior counter terrorism officer in the UK has defended the government’s decision not to raise the terror threat level in the wake of Wednesday’s attack.
[Update: transport police have increased armed patrols at St Pancras station.]
At this stage, there is no UK connection and the threat levels remain unchanged, at severe for the UK. We continue to review our ability to prevent and respond to terrorist incidents and we have deployed additional measures to help reassure and protect the public.
The measures we take to protect the public are constantly under review.
3.01pm GMT
Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo has announced that the Eiffel tower will go dark at 8pm tonight, writes Mark Tran.
Speaking on France Info radio she confirmed that another rally has been called for 6pm tonight at the Place de la Republique. She also backed the decision not to invite the Front National to a national rally on Sunday, saying it was for “republican parties”.
2.58pm GMT
A French researcher on jihad has pointed to a possible link between the Kouachi brothers and Islamic State, AFP reports.
French-Tunisian jihadist Boubaker el-Hakim who assassinated two Tunisian politicians in 2013 is a member of IS. He was previously part of the “Butte-Chaumont network” in Paris - alongside Cherif Kouachi - that helped send fighters to join al-Qaida in Iraq in the mid-2000s.
Hakim “represents the link between the Kouachi brothers and (IS),” said researcher Jean-Pierre Filiu, a leading expert on radical Islam at Paris’s Sciences Po university.
PT: Boubaker el-Hakim claimed responsibility for the assassination of two Tunisian MPs pic.twitter.com/WuOgiN57S7
2.44pm GMT
Here’s a map showing Crépy-en-Valois which appears to be the current focus of the manhunt for the suspects.
2.42pm GMT
A former lawyer for Cherif Kouachi, has denied that the suspect is an extremist, writes Jonathan Bucks.
Speaking to BFMTV Vincent Ollivier, said of Kouachi:
When he was younger he had no professional or personal projects in his life. After being jailed in 2008 he became less juvenile, but I would not say he was a religious extremist. During his trial he never spoke of any extremist ideals.
For me it is very difficult to make a connection between the young man, who was almost a child, that I knew and the professional gunman that I saw yesterday. The Cherif Kouachi that I knew does not match the person that carried out the killings yesterday.
2.36pm GMT
Are the police honing in on the suspects? Reuters has more:
French anti-terrorism police converged on an area northeast of Paris after two brothers suspected of being behind an attack on a satirical newspaper were spotted at a petrol station in the region.
Two police sources said that the men were seen armed and wearing cagoules in a Renault Clio car at a petrol station on a secondary road in Villers-Cotterets some 70 kilometers from the French capital.
2.31pm GMT
Satire and Islam do not sit well together, writes the Guardian’s Middle East editor Ian Black. Especially if the format is visual representation of the prophet Muhammad – and perhaps also the self-proclaimed caliph of Islamic State (Isis), now ruling swaths of Iraq and Syria, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
In a cartoon published just before Wednesday’s killings, Charlie Hebdo portrayed Baghdadi, apparently based on a photograph of him preaching in a mosque after the capture of the Iraqi city of Mosul last June and his proclamation of a new caliphate. It sarcastically wished him “especially good health”.
2.16pm GMT
Former French foreign minister and co-founder of Médecins Sans Frontières, Bernard Kouchner, who was friends with a number of the journalists killed, said that the country was at war. Speaking on the BBC Radio 4’s World at One he said that the attackers were trying to terrify the French people, but that they wouldn’t succeed, writes Frances Perraudin.
“It is the beginning of a new era,” he said. “It is the globalisation of the fight – I know this is not only a European problem and this is not only a Middle East problem.”
He continued: “The main thing is that the muslim people in my country realise that we have a common enemy ... We don’t want any religious war. We want to resist and defeat the terrorists”.
2.14pm GMT
There are more reports of a heavy police presence in Crépy-en-Valois amid unconfirmed claims that the suspects are hold up in the town.
The BBC’s Piers Schlofield tweets this image:
Huge convoy of police incl black armoured truck just flew through Crepy en Valois. pic.twitter.com/tE84tm2WHc
@radiomitre Sujetos estan localizados en casa atrincherada en Crepy en Valois Rodeados x fuerzas de la Gendarmería pic.twitter.com/XUadgSWTlx
2.10pm GMT
Google plans to donate donating £250,000 to Charlie Hebdo, writes the Guardian’s media editor Jane Martinson.
This should help with the magazine’s plans for a 1m print run for Charlie Hebdo next week.
1.56pm GMT
Molotov cocktails and Jihadist flags were found in the abandoned Citroen used by the attackers, according to AFP’s Didier Lauras.
#CharlieHebdo : drapeaux jihadistes et cocktails Molotov dans la voiture abandonnée mercredi à Paris (proche dossier) #AFP
1.51pm GMT
iTele have done a moving interview with Patrick Pelloux, a casualty doctor and contributor to Charlie Hebdo, who arrived at the offices moment after the massacre had taken place.
He was not at the meeting, but was nearby and was called by one of the survivors who told him that his help was needed.
1.48pm GMT
The co-founder of the Cartoon Movement Arend Jan van den Beld has expressed his horror at Wednesday’s murders, writes Aisha Gani.
In a letter to the Guardian he said: “The massacre of the great people at Charlie Hebdo came as a horrible blow to me and even more to all the cartoonists in our network.”
Our aim now is to have as many of them [cartoons] as possible published or displayed in as many different places as possible, to show that satire can not be stopped with violence. All we want in return is proper credits for the cartoonists.
We founded Cartoon Movement to create a platform for cartoonists where they are free to publish their, often very different and sometimes unknown and to some people uncomfortable, perspectives on the news of the world and in their respective countries.
1.39pm GMT
There are unconfirmed reports that the suspects are hiding out in the town of Crépy-en-Valois, in the Oise department. Police vans were positioned in the town as a helicopter circled overhead.
Deux hélicoptères Puma au-dessus de Crépy-en-Valois, Oise #CharlieHebdo pic.twitter.com/iy49aVKilo
#OISE Les suspects seraient repérés vers Crépy-en-Valois http://t.co/v4i6m8dV8v pic.twitter.com/XHidembYz2
RAID et GIGN déployés à Villers-Cotterêts et Crépy-en-Valois #CharlieHebdo http://t.co/9WCbxlvum1 pic.twitter.com/PVkhxbcjWK
1.28pm GMT
Here’s a summary of the main developments so far today:
• A minute’s silence in memory of the 12 people killed in the attack on the offices of Charlie Hebdo was observed at gatherings around the world at 12pm French time. Crowds gathered outside Notre Dame cathedral in central Paris, where the bells rang out marking the national day of mourning. Staff and representatives Elysee Palace observed the silence, as did those at the UK parliament in London and European parliament in Brussels as did those at the Elysee Palace. A number of media organisations also observed the silence.
1.23pm GMT
The Ukip leader, Nigel Farage, has drawn criticism for blaming the Charlie Hebdo terror attack by Islamist extremists on a “really rather gross policy of multiculturalism” in the west, writes Rowena Mason and Frances Perraudin
The politician claimed there was now a “fifth column” operating in the UK, which, though small, was trying to undermine British society. As he argued against multiculturalism, he also brought up the grooming of children in south Yorkshire by men of mainly Muslim Pakistani heritage.
Several senior politicians condemned his remarks, including Nick Clegg, who said he was dismayed that Farage’s first reaction was to make political points about the shooting.
1.14pm GMT
More than 100 MPs, peers and their staff gathered in Westminster Hall to show their solidarity with France at midday on Thursday, many holding up placards reading Je Suis Charlie.
Pens aloft. UK MPs, peers and Parliamentary staff stand in solidarity with the people of France. #JeSuisCharlie pic.twitter.com/ztJPZedJB7
1.05pm GMT
Le Monde has published disturbing images of Charlie Hebdo’s bloodstained offices.
They show blood splattered papers from the magazine offices trampled into the red stained floor. When Charlie Hebdo writer, Laurent Leger, sounded the alarm he said: “It’s carnage, a bloodbath.”
12.57pm GMT
Here’s video of the minute’s silence across France.
12.48pm GMT
Guardian meeting tonight in support of murdered French colleagues. Tickets £5 to support families https://t.co/8KwMio8Xn0
Speakers will include Natalie Nougayrede, former editor of Le Monde, now a columnist with the Guardian; our two main cartoonists Steve Bell and Martin Rowson; Observer columnists Nick Cohen and Henry Porter; writers Sunny Hundal and Shahida Bari.
12.44pm GMT
Classmates of an 18 year-old accused of being the getaway driver for Wednesday’s bloody attack on French magazine Charlie Hebdo have taken to twitter to defend him, saying he was in class when masked gunmen open fire, my colleague Emma Graham-Harrison writes:
Mourad Hamyd turned himself in to police in his hometown of Charleville Mezieres near the border with Belgium after he was named as one of three suspects in the attack, which killed 12, and saw his name on social media.
Soon after people claiming to be classmates started tweeting under the hashtag #MouradHamydInnocent.
12.37pm GMT
Le Monde says it has been told by Charlie Hebdo’s lawyer, Richard Malka, that the next edition of the magazine will come out on Wednesday and a million copies will be printed. Its weekly circulation is normally around 45,000.
12.23pm GMT
As the search for the gunmen who attacked Charlie Hebdo magazine killing 12 people entered its second day, the atmosphere in Paris was a bizarre mix of febrility and confusion, writes Kim Willsher.
In an unprecedented move, police were said to have “blocked” all the city “portes” - the main roads leading into the city - amid unconfirmed reports that the two suspects Saïd and Chérif Kouachi were heading back towards the French capital “at high speed” in a grey Renault Clio.
The two men were reportedly seen in the Aisne region of north east France, but again the reports were confused. Some French media suggested they had been picked up by cameras at a péage (road toll) stop. Others said they had been identified by the owner of a petrol station near Villers-Cotterot and a number of reports went even further suggesting the two men had robbed the petrol station and made off with fuel and food.
12.14pm GMT
The UK will increase border security checks at ports following Wednesday’s murders.
The terrorist threat level remains at “severe”, Downing Street said after this morning’s emergency Cobra meeting.
UK will increase border security checks at ports in light of Paris terror attack, threat level stays at severe after Cobra meeting
12.09pm GMT
Angelique Chrisafis in Paris has an account of the minute’s silence:
At Notre Dame cathedral, as the bells rang out marking the national day of mourning, hundreds stood in the pouring rain, many holding up newspaper front pages, some bowing their heads and silently weeping, others holding bouquets of flowers.
Claude Bouris, 67, a retired stage-manager who had spent last night at a silent vigil for those killed, said: “This attack strikes at the very heart of all France stands for: freedom and freedom of speech.”
12.06pm GMT
Here’s a video report of the aftermath of that fatal shooting in southern Paris. It is still unclear whether the incident was related to Wednesday’s murders.
12.03pm GMT
The Guardian’s graphic team have put together a guide on what we know about the attack and the subsequent manhunt.
12.02pm GMT
More on the suspect Cherif Kouachi from Le Point via a translation from Jonathan Bucks.
As a teenager Kouachi was often in trouble with the police for a number of crimes. The most serious of which saw him imprisoned for three years in May 2008 after his involvement in the establishment of a network to send would-be Jihadis to Iraq.
In May 2010, police arrested Kouachi, Djamel Beghat and a number of other associates on suspicion of terrorist activity. The prosecution emphasised that Beghat had played an influential role in the radicalisation of Kouachi, who was characterised as a “pupil” who had gravitated towards Beghat.
11.51am GMT
Tensions remain extremely high in Paris amid a virtual security lock down, writes Kim Willsher in the French capital.
The “portes” around the city are still letting traffic in and out, but heavily armed police in armoured vehicles are stationed at each of the portes.
#CharlieHebdo helicopters overflying north Paris.Suspects' vehicle heading for N/E Paris NOT west.Armoured police vehicles at portes.
11.40am GMT
Here’s video of how the Guardian observed the minute’s silence.
11.38am GMT
A 2005 video has emerged of the suspect Cherif Kouachi amid suggestions of how he became radicalised.
Le Point said they have seen documents show that Kouachi had moved among terrorist groups for a number of years and was an associate of Djamel Beghal, a terrorist condemned to 10 years in prison for planning an terrorist attack against the American embassy in France.
11.26am GMT
Free speech advocates have urged media organisations to publish the cartoon covers of Charlie Hebdo as a gesture of solidarity with the French satirical magazine, writes Mark Tran. Some publications in Germany have already done so.
“The ability to express ourselves freely is fundamental to a free society,” said Jodie Ginsberg, chief executive officer of Index on Censorship. “This includes the freedom to publish, to satirise, to joke, to criticise, even when that might cause offence to others. Those who wish to silence free speech must never be allowed to prevail.”
11.24am GMT
Charlie Hebdo will come out next week despite Wednesday’s murder of eight of its journalists, one of its surviving staffers told AFP.
Charlie Hebdo will publish next Wednesday to defiantly show that “stupidity will not win,” said columnist Patrick Pelloux, adding that the remaining staff will soon meet.
“It’s very hard. We are all suffering, with grief, with fear, but we will do it anyway because stupidity will not win,” he said.
11.07am GMT
Many in the crowd marking the minute’s silence held pens aloft as show of support for free speech.
Stylos brandis en l'air devant Notre Dame à midi #AFP pic.twitter.com/gDIQUWNIhq
11.05am GMT
The minute’s silence outside Notre Dame ended with applause.
Sad to think we were at the beautiful Notre Dame just over a week ago and now its the scene for a minutes silence. pic.twitter.com/ziBWc7lUOR
11.03am GMT
A petrol station where the suspects were reported to have been spotted in northern France has been sealed off, according to AFP’s François Becker.
La station-service de l'Aisne ou les suspects ont été repérés est bouclée Aafp pic.twitter.com/KCpCwf9zzq
11.00am GMT
Crowds have gathered in central Paris ahead of a planned minute’s silence in a few moments time.
The bells of Notre Dame are due to toll to mark a minute of national mourning.
Les cloches se taisent. Notre Dame se prépare à sonner le glas #JeSuisCharlie pic.twitter.com/yieUDMoizv
10.56am GMT
The Guardian is reviewing security at its offices in the wake of the Charlie Hebdo attack.
In an email to staff Andrew Miller, chief executive of the Guardian Media Group, said:
We are reviewing security at all Guardian buildings globally, although it is worth stressing that we have not received a threat and there is no reason to believe that we should do anything other than adopt a business as usual approach ... We will continue to monitor this developing situation and will let you know of any changes to our procedures or policies.
10.50am GMT
Kim Willsher has more on those reports of a sighting of the suspects on a motorway in northern France.
The two men were said to be in a grey Renault Clio with number plates covered up wearing balaclavas. Weapons could reportedly be seen in the back of the vehicle travelling away from Paris on the RN2 motorway near Villers-Cotteret.
There are conflicting reports that either a road toll camera or a petrol station worker raised the alarm and that a Kalashnikov and a rocket launcher was clearly visible in the back of the vehicle.
10.40am GMT
There are unconfirmed reports that the suspects have been spotted in northern France.
Kim Willsher writes:
The two suspects have apparently been located in the Aisne department in Picardie in a car with blacked out number plates. The men are said to be armed and on a motorway heading away from Paris.
DERNIÈRE MINUTE - Les suspects de l'attentat de #CharlieHebdo ont été formellement reconnus >> http://t.co/o0ffFXzX2H pic.twitter.com/ytQslaHZ2g
10.36am GMT
The French Council of the Muslim Faith has called on Muslims in France to take in part in demonstrations against the Charlie Hebdo attack planned for this weekend.
Le CFCM appelle les musulmans à participer à la "manifestation nationale" prévue ce week-end #AFP
10.18am GMT
The European Council has observed a minute’s silence. Its president Donald Tusk tweets:
Minute of silence for #CharlieHebdo. My heart is with France. Together we will protect our values pic.twitter.com/MEB1mSZIm6
10.12am GMT
The National Union of Journalists has urged “supporters of press freedom” to join today’s 1100 GMT minute’s silence.
General secretary Michelle Stanistreet,said:
The NUJ, together with journalists and their unions around the world, has condemned this attack as an attempt to gag press freedom and attack the entire profession. Please join us all in stopping work for one minute to pay our collective respects to colleagues who have paid the ultimate price in carrying out their work.
10.08am GMT
A policewoman shot who was shot by gunman in that incident in southern Paris has died, AFP reports.
#BREAKING: Policewoman shot by gunman near Paris dies: police
A police officer and a street sweeper were shot and gravely wounded at the southern edge of Paris on Thursday, 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 Thursday remained at large, said 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.
10.03am GMT
Security at the publishers which released Michel Houllebecq’s controversial novel Soumission (Submission) that featured on the cover of this week’s Charlie Hebdo, has been reinforced, Le Parisien reports.
According to the Guardian’s books editor Claire Armistead the novel was acquired on 6 January for British publication by William Heinemann, which called it “a breathtakingly audacious and daring novel that’s certain to turn heads and raise eyebrows”. It is due to be published in the UK in September.
9.59am GMT
French officials saying there have been several attacks on mosques in France since the Charlie Hebdo attack, AFP reports.
#BREAKING Several attacks against France mosques since magazine killings: officials
9.54am GMT
There are reports of an arrest in relation to that shooting in a southern Paris suburb as tensions continue to run high.
20 minutes journalist Oihana Gabriel has tweeted that a second
man fled the scene.
Une personne a ouvert le feu à 8h à malakoff avec une arme automatique #portedechatillon
Il est beaucoup trop tôt pour dire si ce faits divers est lié à l attaque de Charlie Hebdo, selon le ministère de l intérieur
9.43am GMT
Sarkozy has condemned the mass shooting as an attack on civilisation. Speaking to the reporters after his meeting with Hollande, he said:
The barbarism we are witnessing at the moment, I don’t think it’s a question of democracy. We are talking about the Republic, civilisation. Civilised people, whatever their beliefs have got to unite in the face of this barbarism and fanaticism. This is a war declared on civilisation and civilisation has the responsibility to defend, and that’s what we have decided to do.
9.40am GMT
Anne Penketh in Paris has more on the two police officers shot in the attack.
Ahmed Merabet was a 42-year old policeman working with a bicycle unit at the local police station who was on patrol when he was shot in cold blood by two of the gunmen as they left the building. In a video which has now been removed from the Internet, one of the attackers can be seen shooting Merabet in the head as he pleads for his life on the ground after being wounded. Merabet, a Muslim, leaves behind a partner, according to the police union.
Franck Brinsolaro was the police bodyguard of Charlie Hebdo editor Stéphane Charbonnier. The 49 year old officer, who had worked for the police protection service since 2013, was in the editorial room where the attack took place. A police union spokesman said that the number of death threats against