| CNN | - |
(CNN)
Hooded, black-clad gunmen burst into the office of a provocative French
satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo on Wednesday, killing four cartoonists
and eight others before heading off onto the streets of Paris.
Charlie Hebdo attack: 12 dead in Paris, manhunt on
Police: 3 suspects on the loose after terror attack 01:01
Story highlights
- Prosecutor: Gunman says they were avenging the Prophet Mohammed
- 11 wounded, including 4 in serious condition, prosecutor adds
- Gunmen attack the office of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in Paris
(CNN)Hooded,
black-clad gunmen burst into the office of a provocative French
satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo on Wednesday, killing four cartoonists
and eight others before heading off onto the streets of Paris.
While
it wasn't immediately clear who was behind the late morning attack,
French officials viewed it as a blatant act of terrorism. And there were
fears that things could get worse, with the assailants still on the
loose.
"We need to find the actors of
this terrorist act," French President Francois Hollande said. "They must
be arrested and brought before judges and condemned as quickly as
possible. France is shocked today."
Latest update at 12:47 p.m. ET
•
The gunmen said "Allahu akbar" and that they were avenging the Prophet
Mohammed, Paris Prosecutor Francois Molins told reporters.
•
Molins said at least two gunmen exited a vehicle and carried out the
attack. Earlier, France's interior minister said three people were
involved.
• In addition to the dead, 11 people were wounded, including four in "serious condition," the prosecutor said.
•
Video shows a gunman approaching his getaway car raise his finger in
the air in what appears to be a signal, possibly to another vehicle or
other people who might have played a role in the attack, a Western
intelligence source briefed on the French investigation told CNN.
• Charlie Hebdo
editor and cartoonist Stephane Charbonnier, known as "Charb," is among
the dead in the attack, a police spokesman in the district where the
office is located told CNN. At least three other well-known cartoonists
-- known by the pen names Cabu, Wolinski and Tignous -- were also
killed.
• Interior Minister Bernard
Cazeneuve said that all means are being used to "ensure as quickly as
possible we can identify the (attackers) and (arrest them), so that they
can be punished with the severity that their barbarous acts are worthy
of."
Video shows gunman target seemingly wounded man
These developments come after heavily armed men entered the Charlie Hebdo
office in Paris' 11th district, close to Place de la Bastille, and
opened fire, SPG police union spokesman Luc Poignant told CNN affiliate
BFMTV.
Map: Charlie Hebdo HQ, Paris
A
witness who works in the office opposite the magazine's told BFMTV that
he saw two hooded men, dressed in black, enter the building heavily
armed.
"We then heard them open fire
inside, with many shots," he told the channel. "We were all evacuated to
the roof. After several minutes, the men fled, after having continued
firing in the middle of the street."
A
video taken by a journalist for the Premieres Lignes agency shows the
gunmen shouting "God is great!" as they began the attack, Le Monde
reported. They also cried, "We have avenged the Prophet!"
Gunmen fire, shout 'Allahu Akbar' 00:29
Another,
posted to YouTube, shows two men shooting on a Paris street, then
walking up to and firing point-blank at a seemingly wounded man as he
lay on the ground.
Vehicle similar to getaway car impounded
Prime Minister Manuel Valls raised France's security to its highest level -- "attack alert" -- after the Charlie Hebdo
bloodshed. That means there will be reinforced security at media
company offices, major stores, religious centers and on public
transport, Valls' office said in a statement.
All
available forces have been mobilized, with civil and military
reinforcements as part of this plan. In addition, regional authorities
have been instructed to step up their vigilance.
U.S. counterterrorism agencies are looking at a number of groups, including ISIS
and al Qaeda, that might be responsible for the attack. Charlie Hebdo
has been singled out as a target for Islamist extremists in al Qaeda's
publication, Inspire.
Police impounded a
black Citroen in northeastern Paris similar to the one purportedly used
by the attackers as a getaway car. Video from CNN affiliate BFMTV shows
the vehicle being towed from Porte de Pantin, in Paris' 19th district.
Investigators will do a complete DNA
work-up on the Citroen, including soil signatures that might suggest
where the gunmen came from, a Western intelligence source briefed on the
probe told CNN.
The same source said
that French authorities are searching all travel records from the past
17 days to see whether any of the attackers entered the European nation
over the holidays. This includes checks at Charles de Gaulle and Orly
airports, as well as whatever limited information is available from
train stations.
Satirical magazine has drawn anger
Charlie Hebdo
is no stranger to controversy for having lampooned a variety of
subjects, including Christianity. But what it's done on Islam has gotten
the most attention and garnered the most vitriol.
Its
last tweet before Wednesday's attack featured a cartoon of ISIS leader
Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and the words, "And, above all, health."
Earlier
cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammed -- depictions that are deplored
by Muslims -- spurred protests and the burning of the magazine's office
three years ago.
In November 2011, Charlie Hebdo's office caught fire the day it was due to publish a cover making fun of Islamic law.
A
year later, in an interview with Le Monde newspaper, Charbonnier gave
little indication that he planned to change Charlie Hebdo's ways.
"It may sound pompous," he said, "but I'd rather die standing than live on my knees."
Killed cartoon editor in 2012: 'Disarm them with humor' 00:35
His
death, and those of seven others, spurred a wave of support for the
publication and its practices around France and the world.
This was evident on social media, where a trend emerged of people tweeting past covers from the magazine as well as the words "Je suis Charlie," or "I am Charlie." Rallies were also planned for Wednesday evening, including one set for Paris' Place de la Republique.
The latest attack spurred
Hollande, the French President, to vow that "no barbarous act will ever
extinguish freedom of the press."
"We
knew that we were threatened like other countries in the world," the
President added later. "We are threatened because we are a country of
freedom."
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