French supermarket hostage-taking: at least one dead

At least one person was killed when a man took hostages in a supermarket in the southwestern French town of Trebes today.

Mayor Eric Menassi told LCI TV that the man had entered the shop screaming "Allahu Akbar, (God is greatest) I’ll kill you all". The station reported that the hostage-taker has claimed allegiance to ISIS.

The hostage-taker was now alone with one police officer in the supermarket and all other hostages had been freed, he added.

LCI TV said the second victim was also dead and that 12 people were injured.

“All the information we have as I speak lead us to think that this would be a terrorist act,” Reuters cited Prime Minister Edouard Philippe as saying.

A police source had said earlier that eight people were being held hostage and that the hostage-taker had shot at a police officer.

Earlier, the Interior Ministry had said security forces were carrying out an operation at a supermarket in southern France. Interior Minister Gerard Collomb was on his way.